Microsoft People Ready Business

While viewing this post from John Battelle’s Search Blog, I realized how companies like Microsoft and Cisco are using social media for their marketing campaigns. While, I had read about this and seen lots of examples of hiring Bloggers to create the buzz, this effort stands out as:
1. it allows the bloggers freedom to express their own views. No endorsing.
2. the banners allow interaction and let people post on to the microsite. Encourages participation without being intrusive.

This is a nice way of creating buzz around new concepts – “People Ready Business” or “Human Network“.

View the campaigns:
People Ready Business from Microsoft on Federated Media
Human Network from Cisco. Again on Federated Media
Search for Better Search from Hakia

Technorati Tags: search, web 2.0, social media, online marketing, microsoft, people ready business, cisco, human network, hakia, search for a better search

Filed under: Online Marketing, Search, Social Media and Networks, web 2.0

Reuters prepares to open bureau on Second Life

NYT reports that Reuters becomes the first establsihed agency to dispatch a full time reporter on Second Life.

What next? Virtual – Marraiges, Recruitment, Families?

And how does the perception of a Brand get impacted? Is Reuters “In” becuase they have a “Second Life” presence? Are we looking at an era where it would become mandatory for your Agency-on-Record to handle “virtual world” campaigns?

Technorati Tags: Reuters, web2.0, second life, online marketing

Filed under: Online Marketing, Social Media and Networks, web 2.0

Ad Spends slowdown or re-allocation of spends?

Media Post reports that analyst firm Merrill Lynch has downgraded the outlook for U.S. and worldwide ad spending. However, the same report says online advertising is growing.

From Media Post”…In fact, ML described the Internet as “the bright spot” within its downgraded overall advertising outlook. “A strong first half has helped buoy growth for this medium this year with acceleration in certain online formats such as branded and classifieds,” the Wall Street analysts report, noting that “the law of large Numbers” is starting to impact advertisers’ budget allocations towards the Internet. There are “some indications that advertisers are putting some money towards new digital initiatives (i.e., mobile advertising, games, video on demand) rather than just online,” says the firm, which also issued a separate report this morning suggesting that the online ad marketplace faces a number of key topics including a “softening revenue environment (at least for Yahoo!), branded versus search outlook, product improvements including the Panama and Vista launches, increasing capital intensity, trends in social networking and industry consolidation.”…“

It will be interesting to watch how the spends are allocated. I foresee spends increasing on “influence the influencers”. Use of social media will increase (people are becoming immune to ads). Do we see a “Social Marketing” department coming up, on the lines of PR department?

Technorati Tags: online marketing, web2.0, Social Networks, advertising

Filed under: Online Marketing, Social Media and Networks, web 2.0

Leveraging Social Networks

Recent article on MarketingVox points out that Social Network users are becoming immune to ads .

No surprises here. For marketers this means increased role of PR. Add top Social Networking Guys in the PR list, apart from journalists. Getting reviews and recommendations from influencers on Social Networking Sites like MySpace becomes very critical.

One interesting example is the recent “Wal-Marting across America” fiasco. Richard Edelman called Robert Scoble to apologize to the blogosphere and did a post as well (does the blogosphere accept it remains to be seen).

Technorati Tags: social networks, walmarting across america, web2.0, Richard Edelman, Robert Scoble

Filed under: Social Media and Networks, web 2.0