Defining New Media

I've moved the podcast to self hosted solution. You can find the latest episodes at:

http://www.DefiningNewMedia.com.

Also give a follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/definenewmedia

What is the future of content? What is the future of media? To market and connect with your audience today but in the future I believe understanding content/media will enable you to successfully transition in this new era we find ourselves in.

Today we start a multi-part series on The Future of Content. In a way we could also name this The Future of Media as the first things we tackle are information, the definition of media, and the definition of content.

Information. We create tons of information and this will speed up tremendously. The Digital Universe study from IDC sponsored by IT firm EMC Corporation predicts that the annual amount of bytes we produce will jump 44-fold over the next decade. We not only talk about this but also I give a quick aside on the information we often don't consider as data or media.

Media. This is a big one. To really be successful in the content realm I believe we have to redefine the word media. Better yet, it is being redefined and it's either you know it or you don't... that's how strongly I feel about it. I reference a great book in this section Cognitive Surplus by Clay Shirky. There is a great passage on page 26 that every person looking to market or advertise should take to heart.

Content. What is content? What should we consider content. In a way we can use media and content interchangeably. So is content/media...

• A blog post?
• a quick video?
• a picture?
• facebook update? Facebook Like?
• Twitter update?
• comment on a blog post?
• an up or down vote on a review?

We have to rethink and redefine in our minds what we consider media and content. Now as a marketer that is important but the consumer, your customer doesn't make this distinction.

Your customer lives in a multi-tethered asynchronous relationship with media.

Which means... they do other stuff while they watch TV. Gone are the days of sedentary watching of content. They are consuming, creating, publishing, engaging, and sharing all at the same time.

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Twitter has now officially announced that it is releasing a feature to upload photos and attach them to tweets from Twitter.com. It has been rumored that Twitter would be launching such a service, and now the company has confirmed as much. Interestingly, it is powered by PhotoBucket. More here and here.

Since we started rolling out the +1 button in March, you've been able to recommend content to your friends and contacts directly from Google search results and ads.

But sometimes you want to +1 a page while you're on it. After all, how do you know you want to suggest that recipe for chocolate flan if you haven't tried it out yet? More here. Also you can create your own button.

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We go in deep into a post I saw at MarketingProfs on solving customer complaints. Something the author Guy Winch said really caught my attention:

As a psychologist who also has a private practice, I was always struck by how often patients would discuss consumer complaints, how frustrating they found them, and how helpless they felt about tackling them. I would often coach them through it (when the issue/complaint was meaningful enough-I give several examples of this in my book) and was always amazed at the impact getting the matter resolved had on their self-esteem, mood, and mental health. More here.

Next we talk about how this post on 5 small steps journalists can take to build a bigger, more engaged audience can help in business marketing as well. We talk often about being a creator and thinking of yourself as a media company. Well this post is perfect for that.

Traffic on news sites isn't just about page views and unique visits; it's about people. To build an audience, you have to engage with your site's users and develop strategies to help you maintain your current audience and attract new audiences, by giving them reasons to keep coming back. More here.

We also talk about how Twitter is adding a Follow Button.

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This weekend I was watching 5 or 6 episodes of a Showtime reality TV show Gigolos. In one of the episodes I was struck by something that I think will open up insight into your target market. We talk about that today.

Next we cover a study about how your memories might not be  your memories or 'false experience effect':

A new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research reveals that not only do vivid ads give us false memories related to what we're shown in marketing images, but we are remarkably confident that those memories are true. Long after you watch a commercial picturing a happy family enjoying Nestle cookies around a fire, or laughing on a beach, you may begin to remember those events not as ads, but as real memories of your life. Read more.

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Today in addition to covering a couple of stories we talk about marketing opportunities. What got me thinking about this was in our efforts for us to internally create a digital marketing plan we ignored the most obvious choice for engagement. It wasn't because we didn't know better, I believe it was because it was hard. Today we talk a little more about that.

LinkedIn showed off a new addition to its Lab site today called the LinkedIn Connection Timeline. It's a very fun way to remember people you used to work with throughout the years - and see where they are now. Built internally by LinkedIn's Gordon Koo, the visualization does a good job illustrating the tip of the iceberg of what structured, social data can provide when accessed programmatically

For answers to those questions and more, USA TODAY recently paid a visit to Emily White, Facebook's director of Local, who works with businesses on Facebook tools. White was interviewed in a conference room at Facebook headquarters here, where her shiny Apple MacBook laptop was adorned with a "Like Us on Facebook" sticker that the company gives to businesses. Read more here.

Now is the time to be creating and changing your web properties for the mobile user experience. Starting with your own email marketing or website is likely the lowest hanging fruit, but never skip strategy. Good post on email.

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Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JMP) are launching a service Wednesday that will let people send money to one another from checking accounts using e-mail addresses or cell phone numbers, the Wall Street Journal reports. Read more here.

Also we talk about a great effective tagline over at BillGuard.com. "Antivirus for your Bills"

Facebook has partnered with Spotify on a music-streaming service that could be launched in as little as two weeks, sources close to the deal have told Forbes. Read more here.

From there we talk about 2 important words in advertising...

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First I have share this amazing picture of the devastation in Joplin. Thoughts go out to all in the area and all who are dealing with the aftermath.

The consumers you depend on to buy your products and services are in an extremely fragile economic state, with almost half saying they probably couldn't come up with $2,000 in 30 days. More here.

Facebook's valuation isn't the only thing that's obscene about the social network: A survey has also found a lot of Facebook walls contain profanity. More here.

Search is still tops for finding online businesses, but consumers are relying on real-life recommendations from their friends to actually get them in the door-not on social media. More here.

Google Inc. is expected to disclose details about how consumers will be able to make store purchases, redeem coupons, and get loyalty points by waving smartphones in front of a small reader at the checkout counter, said people familiar with the matter. More here.

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Mobile payments startup Square is announcing big numbers today-500,000 Square card readers shipped, 1 million Square transactions in May, and the startup is now processing $3 million in mobile payments per day. Clearly the company is on a roll in terms of traction and usage. And CEO Jack Dorsey is also revealing the next generation of Square. And Square is about to get a whole lot more disruptive. Read more.

Then we cover something we don't usually talk about and that is lawsuits. Two worth mentioning is an update on the Lodsys vs App Devs. Here is Apple's response. Next is a class action lawsuit claiming that AT&T is overcharging people on data usage.

Also, a Twitter feature update.

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Today we highlight a few good posts out there on the interwebs. First up is a post on Twitter, next up is a post on Facebook, and finally we cover some great advice from the founder of Amazon.

First is the 8 words that shouldn't be on your Twitter Bio:

I checked out a lot of Twitter bios when I was looking for a LinkedIn expert to help with a potential blog post. I didn't find an expert. I did find a lot of awful Twitter bios, though. Capturing the essence of your business in 160 characters is tough.  (It's also tough to know how many people are actually reading or responding to your tweets.)

Next we talk expand on a great post on optimizing Facebook pictures:

Are you using photos to enhance your Facebook page? If not, you may be missing a key opportunity.

Cameras are everywhere these days. This access to photography, coupled with the rise of social media, means that not only can everyone shoot photos, but they can also share them with a lot of people.

And I mention a quote from Jeff Bezos that can be found here.

And our thought on that is very different. We think we make money when we help customers make purchase decisions. And that's different. It's point of view.

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