Eco-Friendly Digital Marketing Internship

There’s nothing worse than watching vlogs(video blogs) of people who a) are uninteresting b) creepy c) are not making a fool of themselves d) especially d)talk too long. The whole time you’re sitting there thinking to yourself, “why am I watching this?” Or, “watching this could make me sterile”. So what does that mean? We need a new social networking website, as if we didn’t have enough. 12seconds is a micro-blogging site that takes a crack at making vlogging short and sweet, 12 seconds sweet. Currently in alpha testing, it remains to be seen whether 12seconds will pry lonely teenagers across the globe from YouTube, it adds a video dimension to the micro-blogosphere(that’s the first time I ever say blogosphere, and hopefully the last). Users can post from either a webcam or their mobile phone and integrate their videos into a blog, website, Twitter feed, amongst others.

My first post was a video from a concert I went to last summer(Brendan from Umphrey’s McGee and Al from .moe if you’re interested) and took about 5 minutes to upload from the time I hit ‘send’. Potential 12second users could be rudimentally grouped into two categories: those who use it to share with friends, family and colleagues and those who use the site as their soap box because their therapist told them to get out and express themselves. Let’s hope the latter just sticks to YouTube.

Multimedia message on 12seconds.tv
Multimedia message on 12seconds.tv

12seconds can be fully integrated into a TweetDeck and the layout of the site is modeled after Twitter. In a blog post from the creators, they seemed like very big Twitter advocates and explained how they were not attempting to compete with them, but more so piggy-back off them. I also doubt that 12seconds could sway a substantial audience away from YouTube, because its applications are so narrow.

Because the site is currently in alpha testing, round one of two in quality assurance, the developers have set up a voting page for upcoming applications, settings, etc. One of the topics being voted on was privacy settings and whether videos would be featured on the homepage without notifying the user. I think keeping this trust is crucial to the viability of 12seconds, nobody wants to be the next Star Wars kid. I was disappointed when I was able to sign out and search for my username, mine came up, making me think how by some chance my post could wind up on their homepage. My next thought was to check out some of the posts on the homepage, just to see who was embarrassing themselves and unfortunately didn’t come up with anything great. My next thought was a Scrubs-ish daydream of a bunch of derelicts crowded around a laptop busting chops from seeing me ball my eyes out.

The big question is whether 12seconds will make some traction and become a social media powerhouse. I think it will have a hard time stepping out from Twitter’s shadow, everyone seems to be all over it at the moment. Is 12seconds a really cool addition to the mess we call social networking? Yes. Do I think I’ll be posting vlogs as much as check my Facebook? No. Will we be talking about 12seconds 5 years from now? Maybe.

Who am I? Who are you?

It’s an important question from Rishad Tobaccowala, CIO at Publicis Groupe Media (PGM) out of Chicago. He spoke at the University of Michigan earlier this month and had some interesting things to say about both the present and the changes even the near future will bring to the digital world as we know it. Just as a reminder, five years ago, no one had even heard of Facebook.

I remember being in the first 30 or so at Michigan State University to register on Facebook. It didn’t take long before that number grew, and then really grew, but in that early stage it was interesting to see how people were feeling their way around. There was a lot more random connecting, much less fear of being awkward, especially since most of us were freshmen and didn’t know anyone to begin with. In that time, I reconnected with my roommate from orientation, discovered I was pursuing a girl with a boyfriend, and found the kid from my class who I’d become close enough friends with over the next four years to be a groomsman in his wedding last summer. All of this is beside the point, but it’s interesting to me to see the way the landscape has changed in such a short time.

One thing Rishad challenged us, the future of digital media, to do, was to find three things: our story, our niche, and our voice.

So what’s my story? You’ve heard part of it, but my first week on Facebook — that’s just the tip of the tip of the tip of the iceberg. Everything — from an adoption I don’t remember, to a singing gig in the White House, to being in Ann Arbor to see my beloved Spartan football team crush the Wolverines in their own backyard after an eight year drought — everything I’ve seen and done has shaped me as an individual and changed the way I view the world today. As a 22-year-old senior in my last semester at Michigan State University, I am grateful for every experience, person, and switched major that has come through my life.

As for my niche? When constructing your own niche, think about what you aren’t — it will help you decide what you are. If you had to sell yourself in three words, what would you say? If you were a post on a blog, what would your tags be? Unless you truly know yourself (and have had some practice), it won’t be easy. I put some serious thought into my own niche, and here’s what I came up with — the three words that define the brand, “Nate Erickson”:

• Adventure – I want a little adventure in everything I do. We live in a global society now, and I’m more excited than ever that I can use that as a reason to escape my corner of the world and see things that most people only read about. Adventure can mean anything from simply getting a job in this fearsome economic climate to running with the bulls in Pamplona.  If you want it, go and get it.  Enjoy the ride.

• Fusion – “Mongrel” is a term I’ve recently started hearing and using for the first time. It’s someone who doesn’t limit themselves. Some people find it strange that I’m the Creative Director of a public relations firm — what do you need creative for when you’re writing press releases? My Answer? Everything. Creativity extends beyond pretty pictures and paintings. I couldn’t sketch to save my life — but when our firm needs a poster or a logo designed, they know they can count on me without outsourcing elsewhere with the fear of unreliability. How about clever or eye-catching writing? There’s a reason they put copywriters in the creative department in advertising agencies. And that’s not all, but you get the idea. I never want to pigeonhole myself, and I stand by that. I think when you can combine the best elements of many areas, you make them work together. When you specialize, you limit yourself, and you lose valuable insight that you could’ve gained by simply viewing what you do from a different perspective. Get a lot of different hats and switch them often.

• Payoff – I feel that results are the ultimate combination of talent and hard work. Talent is useless on its own and hard work without a little inspiration is just labor. To make truly great work, you need both. Set goals. You need to surround yourself with incredible people who believe in what you’re doing, and you need to have results you can measure. Did we succeed? Did we fail? Could we do better? (Hint: We can always do better.) That’s where I live. Set goals, never back down, change the world.

Now, let’s talk about voice. Where am *I* coming from? When you speak to me, or read what I have to say, what am I trying to convey, and how am I doing that? What is my voice?

• Passionate. First and foremost, it’s passionate. One thing Dave Regan, my ADV 486 professor, likes to remind us is to never be a bump on a log, a speck in the wind. Dave reminds us to speak up, always, and don’t be afraid to disagree with someone, even if they “outrank” you — but be prepared to back it up. I try to put passion into everything I do. Passion doesn’t just help you, it motivates the people around you, your team, and helps you create the kind of great work that can solve any problem. My personal motto, one I developed while spending most of my youth on Lake Michigan, is “make waves” — everywhere you go, and in everything you do.

• Optimistic. Second, my voice is optimistic. I’m not sure if the concept of “hope” has been completely bought, chopped up and resold by politicians, but if you don’t have it, how can you ever believe in what you’re doing? And if you can’t believe in what you’re doing — maybe it’s time to reevaluate certain aspects of your life. Always believe, dream, hope, and make an effort to leave the world better than how you found it.

• Unique. Third, my voice is unique. I’ve always tried to find my own way of saying and doing things. It’s part of my “brand”, you could say, as I make an effort to be memorable not just in what I say, but how I say it. I love conversation and I try to make my writing fit that, whether I’m being serious or trying to get a few laughs. Hopefully that comes through in how I write and how I speak. The best part about conversation is about talking back, so don’t be afraid to respond — I’m always listening.

nateerickson.wordpress.com

Is this the new face of our favorite addiction? Or has it always been?

Here’s a disturbing new article from Mashable detailing Facebook‘s latest big innovation in controlling each and every aspect of our lives.

The central message of the article has been obvious from the start — WATCH. WHAT. YOU. POST. ONLINE. Maybe ORM really will be a precious resource over the next decade.  Unfortunately for Facebook users like myself and most likely anyone who reads this blog, this also applies to your friends as well.  Once it’s been “fed” to Facebook, it never comes out.  That means pictures, notes, messages, posts — anything you or anyone you know uploads to their servers — are immediately at the discretion of whichever faceless, shadowy figures now run the social networking giant.  What’s changed here is that, even if you deactivate or remove these items, Facebook’s new TOS is happy to remind you that what’s done is done.  Kind of scary.  Is it time for a change?  Who is it up to?  Injustices like human trafficking are one thing, but as we learned from the new facebook layout, nothing inspires a social movement like a redesign of a website — but even the voices of 2.6 million users fell on deaf ears.  Facebook only grew in popularity… and continues to do so.

Now I’m no big city lawyer, but I imagine this change is going to be looked at very heavily throughout the blogosphere and hopefully the legal realm over the coming weeks, as there is definitely something fishy about all of this.  Just because I carry a sign around that states that all who read it must shower me with gifts doesn’t mean they actually have to.

If it’s something that Facebook has to do, then fine, but if it’s suddenly okay for them to make money by selling an image of my friends, I think there are some people out there who’d like to get a little advance notice so they can take their business elsewhere.  Friendster, you’re still cool, right?  No?  Well, don’t worry, at this rate, Facebook will be joining you soon.  What a shame.  I feel like XuQa was just getting settled into its own corner of the grave.

After a wonderful presentation from Rishad Tobaccowala at the University of Michigan on 2/6/09 (check out my blog for a breakdown of his presentation), there are a couple of quick points I want to highlight. He discussed how important it is for every student to carry a story, niche, and voice about themselves. So, I broke down myself- and figured it all out. It’s actually pretty fun and will work to my advantage when interviewing- check it out!

The first thing to remember: YOU are your own BRAND.

What’s your story? Brands are built by storytelling. YOU are technically a brand- a very specific brand that should be marketed to a particular area you seek. So how do you do that? Format what you’re looking for through your story. My STORY was created a while back, and then dropped into my personal website. Be honest. Be yourself. Be original. You want to set yourself apart from everyone else out there- and there are TONS of people who possess the same qualities as you. It’s all how you market them and carry your story!

What is your niche? You have up to 3 words…. A brand decides what it’s not, much more than what it is. Think about what you are- and what you’re not. My Niche: Future, Change, Fun.

What is your voice? Do not live in other peoples’ minds. We’re too busy with what other people think. Live in your mind. Developing 3 words to describe your voice can give your brand an edge. My Voice: Tenacious, Distinct, Brave.

I also have a fun exercise that deems to be beneficial. Sit down and come up with 10 questions that you want to ask yourself. And then answer them- however you can only answer them in 4-5 sentences each. I dropped a few of my questions and answers below. You could bring these questions to an interview with you- show them a thing or two about who’s running the interview (KIDDING). But it’s another great way to give employers a STORY about yourself, without them having to ask.

A quick interview with Jeff Bobick.

What/who inspires you? My aunt and uncle have worked so hard in their careers to be where they are today by working extra hours, traveling around the world, and still maintaining a sophisticated social life. If I have a positive, passionate attitude towards life and my work, like my aunt and uncle, I can get the best out of life- and it will show.

What are you passionate about? My career and future, or at least what I’m trying to make of it. I have been determined to go out, work with a smile and not settle for anything less than success. My accomplishments of discovering who I am are held deep inside of me- I learn from my mistakes and live with no regrets. The only mistake I can make, is not marketing myself to the world. The only mistake they can make is passing me up.

What cheers you up? Any of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s piano works, his Prelude in C# Minor particularly. Most of his music is very dark and dreary, especially this one. Whenever I am stressed out or in a bad mood this is the first song to be played on my iPod. It starts out very dark and works into a very fast-paced ride that stirs up my senses. I play piano, so I have a deep respect for complicated pieces and this shines.

What is your favorite food? Thai food with spice. Egg noodles, ordered “hot.” My nose needs to be running in order for me to really enjoy the spiciness of the Thai food. It’s not a painful “hot” sensation in your mouth, but something that can be enjoyed with a little bit of water.

Coffee or tea? That’s a touchy subject. Coffee, for sure, bit it’s much more than just a “cup of coffee” to me. I go to Starbucks at least 4-5 times per week, ordering a venti non-fat vanilla latte for the sweet taste of vanilla against the bitter espresso. The calm, sophisticated atmosphere of the barista adds to my coffee experience too.

What are you known for among your friends and family the most? My smile and attitude. I always carry my smile with me in my pocket and I try to view everything positively- even though I know that’s not always going to be possible. The smile and the positive attitude go hand-in-hand when helping others. Not only is it gratifying for me but I think that my friends and family really appreciate it when times are particularly rough.

Ingenex Digital Marketing is looking for 5 or so quality interns for Summer 2009 Eco-Friendly Digital Marketing Internship. This internship is a combination of networking, real life experience, face time in a professional office, and training on digital media. It rocks! And it won’t take too much of your time.

You come to Ann Arbor once a week to work for 2.5 hours. You learn about all forms of digital media. You work for real clients and non-profits. And you do the rest from the comfort of your apartment, library or coffee shop. It’s a low emission, kind internship for people who want to grow in the digital space.

If you have the goods – apply to this post. We will accept applications through April 15. The next class of interns will begin May 18. Please apply to the internship in a variety of ways. Make a comment on this blog post with why you feel your a good candidate. Connect w/ me on Linkedin and ask for an intersnhip. Be creative online and get our attention. It may just pay off for you.

Also, if you’re not looking for an internship consider taking the New Media Drivers License course at Michigan State University. It will rock your world.

When professionals give advice to students of the ad industry, they like to say you need to “build your own brand.” More often than not, they leave it at that while leaving students, myself included, bewhildered with grasping to draw a comparison between what they’ve learned about branding in class and their own personal development.

Should I take out a 30-second network spot? Well, it’d have to be late night because that’s all I can afford.

Last week, Rishad Tobaccowala, Cheif Innovation Officer for Publicis/Starcom shed some much needed light on personal brand building. After a very insighful presentation, he took a question regarding what he looks for in job candidates. His reply, “mongrels.” What? He went on to explain he’s looking for well-rounded, curious, persistent individuals with a sense of humor. He went on to explain the foundations of a personal brand- a story, a niche and a voice.

So let me tell you a story: My freshman year was wrapping up and I needed to find a summer job. I knew I didn’t want to go back to waiting tables and I wanted to do something adventurous, I wanted a cool job. That landed me on a job search site called coolworks.com, very fitting. I applied to a variety of jobs in national parks all over the country. Eventually, I had some options: Yellowstone, Lake Tahoe or Lake Powell. I took the job at Lake Powell with a very vague job description and a lot more ambiguities of the location, the work environment, and plenty of other variables. Day one at Lake Powell was so overwhelming, the natural beauty, the distance from home(I had never spent more than two weeks away from home and my contract was for over three months). After a few days, I still didn’t know what I was going to be doing. They said I’d be working at Adventure Cove, the resort’s beach area. OK, so I’m gonna be working on a beach, sounds like a cool job. While in the HR office, I saw a job posting for wakeboard instructors that seemed very enticing, except that I was an amateur wakeboarder at best. regardless, I volunteered for the job and got it.

The rest of my summer was filled with excitement, adventure and new experiences that I will cherish for a lifetime. My appreciation for the outdoors grew immensely and I made lifelong friends from all over the world. My wakeboarding skills developed because I was on the boat giving lessons and riding three days a week. A defining moment was when a group that I went camping with were stranded on a beach for over two days with little supplies. Luckily, we had a cell phone but in order to get reception we had to hike up a 500 plus foot plateau. Eventually we were rescued and I was able to get to work on time for my next shift. The experience is something I can laugh about now, but let me assure you of the anxiety I felt while stranded on that beach. I tell that story every chance I get and consider it a huge part of my branding story.

So what is my niche in three words? Adventure, there’s lessons to be learned with every rock waiting to be turned over.  Listening, whether it be music or CEO’s every source has something to be gained, be a sponge. Leadership, march to the beat of a different drummer, be your own voice.

My voice? The culmination of my life experiences has shaped my voice, which admittedly, I am still finding. But in three words: Passionate, Spontaneous, and Curiousity.

I thank Rishad for the insights he shared. Already his words have impacted how I work on my advertising capstone classes as well as how I construct my story, niche and voice. I hope to be in his shoes someday.

It’s been almost a week since the dust has settled from advertising’s biggest day,  Super Bowl Sunday and industry guru’s have had the chance to crown the winners and shame the losers. But in the digital age how do you crown a winner? Are we still gauging a spots success on recall? What is to be said of web traffic or search results? Nielson IAG indexed the Budweiser Clydesdale Stick spot as both the most-liked and the most-recalled. According to comScore budweiser.com ranked second as the top gaining Super Bowl advertiser in web traffic, behind GoDaddy.

Dropping $3 million on a spot surely makes any marketing manager a little nervous. So why did so many advertisers in the Super Bowl not follow up their big media buy with some sort of search-marketing plan? Some advertisers didn’t even show up in the first page of a Google search. According to an article on Advertising Age’s website, only one in five advertisers had a specific call to action to their website. However, 65% of the advertisers bought search terms related to their commercials. Slogans that advertisers spent $100,000 per second to brand were still available on Google after Sunday. How are these guys not getting the message? I can imagine a good percentage of Super Bowl watchers that are sitting in their living rooms watching the game with a computer in their lap. The fact that research companies are doing the research says one thing, but that advertisers could completely ignore the importance of making the online-offline connection is just annoying for someone in my fourth year of being in MSU’s advertising program, one word could epitimize what I’ve been taught—digital(group project is a close second).

Some of my favorite spots of the Super Bowl were Pepsi’s ‘Forever Young’, any montage that includes Bob Dylan, Bruce Lee, John Belushi and surfing has my vote. The split screen images transcended generations to relate back to the way Pepsi has branded themselves for the past four or so decades-the drink of your generation. The spot had a fresh, hip vibe that Gen Yer’s could appreciate and Baby Boomers could reminisce about.

Watch Pepsi’s – Forever Young

Another spot I really liked was Hulu, not because of the creative or because I am a particular fan of Alec Baldwin(truthfully, before 30 Rock I despised him) but because the site is getting some mainstream attention. I was in a room of 12 people and only 2 knew what Hulu was, including myself.  In case you didn’t know before the Super Bowl, Hulu is a premium content streaming video that launched in March 2008 and is only currently offered in the United States. Although, it would not be in direct competition with YouTube, Hulu’s main reason for existence is in response to the demand for professional content to be regulated after copyright claims were brought against YouTube in recent years. Time will tell whether Hulu will be making the push for time slots on mainstream television, but their somewhat creepy spot last Sunday definitely raised some eyebrows.

Watch Hulu Super Bowl commercial

Anyone looking to expand their business into the office or architects planning any sort of major building should definitely look into EnviroGLAS terrazzo when it comes to designing the floor.

EnviroGLAS is fully customizable in terms of color and shape, it’s made from recycled products found here in America, and it’s an investment that will outlast the investor. Glass retains its natural qualities long (millions of years) after breaking, and can always be melted down and formed into brand new glass. Best of all, as opposed to adding on the harmful chemicals needed to strengthen and clean marble floors, all you need to clean EnviroGLAS is simple soap and water.

Tim Whaley, a Michigan State graduate, patented the idea of EnviroGLAS after discovering how much glass and ceramic (90%) found its way into landfills in Texas, where the company is located. Tim thought that it was such a shame that such a beautiful product was going to waste, and decided he could do something about it and give people something they could really use as well.

Builders, contractors, interior designers, anyone who’s looking to live a more sustainable and eco-friendly life should look into glass terrazzo flooring. It’s an opportunity to build green that won’t “break” you.

Check out the website at http://www.enviroglasproducts.com

As many of you may be aware Google has a very advanced and user friendly application called Google Maps.  Google Maps provides traffic details, satellite views, list views, map views, hybrid views, GPS, driving directions, public transit details, and so on.  Google has now taken this application one step further by adding Google Latitude into the mix.  Google Latitude allows you to locate where your family and friends are as well as show them where you are in real time within Google Maps. 

The privacy settings have an opt-in-only feature, meaning no one can see anyone else’s location without permission.   Once permission is granted the settings can be adjusted and can vary from your location being automatically detected, manually entered or completely hidden from other people, another way to hide is to sing out of Latitude altogether.  Users can also adjust the level of geographic information they are willing to share from a specific spot on a street to a city location.  These settings can be individual specific. 

Users can also upload a picture and change their status line through this account which will both appear as the icon on the map representing them.  The changes here will also reflect in the users Google Talk account (the instant messenger within G-Mail).  This is a great feature as users will be able to update their pictures or status dependant on where they are allowing them to share their surroundings with their friends and family.  The downside to this is that there are many other ways to send instant pictures to others like simply sending a picture through a text message for starters. 

I personally see this as a great tool for parents checking on their kids, or to keep track of elderly relatives that may live on their own.  It is a great security measure but not something you can solely depend on.  Friends and family can use it as a tool to share their whereabouts with each other in a fun, visual way. 

My only concern with this tool is it’s ability to be used as a stalking device.  Scenarios can range from people in shaky relationships cyber stalking their significant others to make sure they know their every move, all the way to predators looking for their vicitims.  Everyday the news reports new ways predators are using to reach their targets; through chat rooms, facebook groups, virtual gaming like X-Box Live.  These tools are giving them the platform to create relationships and have the ability to con, especially children, into providing information that shouldn’t be given to strangers, I wouldn’t be surprised if their are criminal minds out there already plotting to use this tool to know the exactly where their so called “friends” are located. 

Although there are several competitors out there with similar tools, most in the past have been for specific mobile devices.  Google has made this tool easily accesible to the masses.  Still in its early stages I will be interested in what this tool leads to as a social utility.

Deepti Dewan Chowdhry

Cell phones are no doubt getting to be a all in one piece to replace your wall calander, home phones, handheld game system, camera, flashlight…..The king of these new cell phones seems to be the Apple iphone with its consistantly high reviews and competitors quickly coming out with touch screen phones to just keep up with the popularity Apple provided with this touch screen cell phone technology.

Only problem for all of us who love the iphone is it isnt available on our network. Rumor has it Apple iphone won’t ever be available for our networks due to long term contracts with AT&T.

Wait! I found this piece of digital software that came out toward the end of January. Read quick bio below

“UK based iPhone unlocking Ltd. has launched its new 3G iPhone Unlocking software, which gives iPhone 3G owners the ability to use the smartphone with any network provider worldwide and also enables MMS, video recording, instant messaging, and the use of third party applications. The company promises full 24 hour customer support via email, live chat and by phone. This 3G iPhone Unlocking software costs about 16 pounds, or 23 bucks” For more information click here.