With the Super Bowl only a few days away, every aspect of the matchup on the field has been ruthlessly dissected, overanalyzed and predicted. Almost equally as important to the action on the field, is the drama that will happen between TV timeouts, namely the commercials. With a record cost of ad placements, the country will be tuned in to watch the best and worst spots and discuss them over bagels at work on Monday morning.

One trend that has been picking up steam as of late is the strategy of releasing these marquee spots AHEAD of the big game and seeding them online prior. Is this a good strategy? As in most cases, there’s no simple right or wrong answer but an argument to be made for either side. Today, Matt and Ellis defend each point.

Rainone: Super Bowl Sunday. Advertisers are paying a ton of money ($3.5million) not just to reach the largest television audience each year, but also to create conversations. What’s the big deal if those conversations start the week before? In fact, that’s actually more coverage for the brand now as opposed to next week when ALL of the commercials are going to be dissected.

Watts: The goal of the spot should depend on the individual advertiser. While some may want the buzziest of buzz, others might simply want tangible results (i.e. sales, drive to web, etc.). While conversations are great, it may not be the end goal.

Take for example the “Old Spice Guy” campaign. It debuted during the Super Bowl, had TONS of coverage and viral-ness (virality?), but actually didn’t quite catapult sales as much as everyone thought as it was supported by an unprecedented, national couponing effort.

Another factor here to keep in mind is how that campaign / experience was refreshed with a boatload of great content, not just hammering home the same commercial over and over again.

Rainone: If advertisers are confident that they have developed great commercials, it should be good enough the second or third time viewers watch it.

Watts: How many times can you realistically expect a viewer to watch a commercial with complete interest and intrigue? It’s not like the audience is watching “Inception”. While we industry folks may have a romanticized vision of a captive audience getting caught up in the artistry of a :30 second production – the reality is anything but that outside of Super Bowl Sunday. The GEICO caveman wasn’t funny the first time I saw it, and it won’t be on the thirtieth, no matter when it airs.

Rainone: We also have a bit of a skewed outlook on this since we’re in the industry and we’re actively searching for the spots. In reality, that the majority of the Super Bowl audience probably hasn’t seen the commercial by the time it airs. The ad that’s probably getting the most attention this year is the Ferris Bueller/Honda spot. At the moment, it is hovering just under 15 million views if you aggregate views across a few sites. Assuming there’s probably going to be almost 100 million more people than that watching the game, it’s safe to assume that there’s no harm in doing an early release.

Watts: I wouldn’t look at is as, “what’s the harm?” but rather, “how can we make this even better?” For those that consider an early release, the opportunity to deliver a simple “refresh” of the spot, still exists – that way it’s entirely new to new viewers but still rewards those that have seen it. Refreshes can range from introducing a longer spot (from a  pre-release :30 up to a :60) with additional scenes and longer narrative to a simple tag that drives online for more info / entertainment.

Doritos has been pushing their user-generated “Crash the Super Bowl” contest for a couple of years now and it’s possible that some of the best entries won’t make it to air (or even as finalists). I’m expecting to see a call-to-action somewhere for viewers to go online and view the other finalists.

Rainone: What’s the worst thing that could happen for advertisers that do pre-release? Someone says “oh, I’ve already seen this one” and then gets up to use the bathroom. What’s the net loss in impressions there? 0. The best thing that could happen is that someone says, “oh, I’ve already seen this one, you guys, quiet down so you can hear the punch line.” What’s the net gain on that? A fully-attentive audience.

Watts: I wouldn’t say there’s absolute harm in it per se, aside from losing some thunder from the anticipation and reveal when it first runs. With information moving faster than we can even understand, and an era where spoilers are released in the blink of an eye, this shouldn’t come as a surprise.

You want to consider the worst case scenario? If the Super Bowl no longer becomes about releasing the latest and greatest, the idea of it being an event-within-an-event is lost as well. How intently did you watch the commercials during the AFC Championship? Imagine that same level of bland interest except that the advertisers paid a fortune for that time when you’re planning your next trip to the nacho platter / bathroom (not necessarily in that order).

Boom. Super Bowl ad dystopia. Terrifying stuff.

One of our favorite events from this year’s CES was the Mobile Apps Showdown. Hosted by Howard Stern regulars Jon Hein and Gary Dell’Abate, this event gave ten app developers four minutes to pitch their app concept to the audience and conduct a quick on-stage demo. The top app was determined by an Applause-O-Meter winning a shiny trophy, the admiration of attendees and a landslide of CES media coverage. In a previous blog post (http://bit.ly/zJTZje), we discussed “CIA: Operation AJAX”, one of the top ten finalists. Today, we take a quick look at five finalists that inspired our imaginations.

Aurasma Lite by Aurasma

Developer’s Description: Aurasma is a new technology that brings the physical and virtual worlds together. Available as a free app for iOS and Android devices or as a free SDK for developers, Aurasma uses advanced image and pattern recognition to recognize and understand real-world images and objects in much the same way as the human brain does. It then seamlessly blends the real-world with interactive content such as videos and animations we call “Auras”.  Auras can be created for printed images, products, clothing and physical places. Users can even use the simple tools in the app to create and share their own Auras.

Since its launch in July 2011, Aurasma has had more than two million downloads. Over 1,000 partners around the world in markets including consumer electronics, retail, sport, automotive, entertainment, advertising and publishing are using the free technology. Aurasma was developed by and is part of Autonomy – an HP Company.

Cost: Free

Link: Website (http://bit.ly/ycTMoX), iTunes (http://bit.ly/zHWYVf)

Ellis’ Take: This platform has HUGE upside. Augmented reality is something that to most is complex, confusing, and costly. This app empowers everyday users to tag and affect the digital world around them. Will it evolve into the next big digital platform or linger on as a simple novelty adopted and loved by a core group of hobbyists (like a new evolution of geocaching)?

Matt’s Take: Interesting opportunity here for brands. While augmented reality is something a lot of brands are looking into, the price tag is usually a barrier for entry. Being able to utilize pre-existing technology to create branded information with your products is something that should be very enticing for most brands, especially in the retail space.

Magisto by Magisto

Developers Description: Magisto is an amazing app that takes your raw videos and turns it into a beautifully edited & produced clip perfect for sharing. And it does it all in a click, for free. Right now, all these special moments are too long and boring to share. With Magisto you can create videos that your friends actually want to watch and you can do it with minimum efforts and maximum quality.

Magisto will analyze these videos, understand it, find the best parts and make it look amazing! Now you have a way to express yourself and to capture those special moments that you want to share with the people around you.

Cost: Free

Link: Website (http://bit.ly/xwXL3P), iTunes (http://bit.ly/xPbikY)

Ellis’ Take: Three easy, mindless steps to create a highlight reel from videos of my dog. Win.

Matt’s Take: Really liked this at first, but upon further review, all videos need to stream from the site and you can’t actually “own them”. Their plan is to move to a “freemium” model that gives you added capabilities for a price.

Cinefy by App Creation Network

Developers Description: Cinefy is a mobile video editing platform for iPhone where users create and share videos mixed with high quality special effects. Cinefy empowers users with no editing skills to quickly insert footage, add music and apply visually stunning effects with its intuitive and simple interface.

“As a former television director, this is a thrilling product to see in action” said Gary Stover, Product Director.

In Cinefy, individual themed or branded effects packs are available for in-app downloads, offering TV and game studios the ability to market products in a way that creates exciting and massive viral exposure potential.

“We made Cinefy to put the most exciting Hollywood quality production tools directly in the user’s hands,” said Dan Hellerman, CEO of App Creation Network. “The ability for studios to promote their brands, by empowering users with actual effects elements themed to their shows or games, is an explosive marketing tool.”

Cost: $2.99

Link: Website (http://bit.ly/w6dl86)

Ellis’ Take: I don’t know if this will make home videos better…just different. For brands with user-generated content strategies in place, this could be a valuable tool that you may want to encourage consumers to consider. It could certainly raise the presentation of user-generated content, adding more value to those campaigns.

Matt’s Take: Much like Magisto, I like the idea of being able to easily create better videos than the ones most people are uploading to Facebook now.

SecuraFone by SecuraTrac

Developer’s Description: SecuraFone is a multi-purpose smartphone app that functions as a powerful, personal safety solution. SecuraFone helps prevent distracted driving and accidents, provides instant emergency response, and offers 6 other GPS tracking and alerting features including: real-time tracking, historical tracking, geo-fence alerts, SOS alerts, and covert, emergency help calls to emergency response centers or the primary account contact. The alerts are sent using email and text messaging. 45% of teen drivers text while driving and 11 die each day in accidents caused by distracted driving. 35% of seniors will fall each year – the leading cause of injury-related deaths among seniors. Employers spend over $60 billion a year in medical costs, legal fees and property damage related to employee driving accidents. SecuraFone serves as a tool for instant communication in this type of emergency situation and as a proactive solution to prevent accidents and dangerous conditions before they occur.

Cost: Free

Link: Website (http://bit.ly/xKPtOv), iTunes (http://bit.ly/A10nYP)

Ellis’ Take: It was interesting to hear the audience reaction to this app being presented. While many of the other apps received “oohs” and “aahhs”, this app had a strange impending sense of “big brother” to it – especially when the developer referenced being able to track your employees locations in real time. You can imagine that at a conference held in Las Vegas, the response to that feature was rather lukewarm.

Matt’s Take: Absolutely horrifying. I must download this immediately.

Foam Fighters by AppGear

Developers Description: AppGear is an innovative line of apps that seamlessly interact with cool, collectible toys, shifting digital gaming into your reality. Foam Fighters is a collectible line of detailed foam airplanes that really fly and look fantastic on their own. These foam fliers also unlock missions in the digital world by scanning them into a smart device. Once unlocked, these planes are attached to the front of the device with the included arm, then dive in to the digital world and battle for control of the skies. The plane is mounted on the front of the smart device, dog fighting and taking digital damage in the app. The real world plane is now flying in the digital battle for the skies.

This new product category will redefine game play by upgrading the physical experience with digital action.

Cost: App is free; Retail play set is $9.99

Link: Website (http://bit.ly/xG1g1r)

Ellis’ Take: Is it wrong if I wish I was ten years old again? Or if society didn’t have a stigma about adults playing with toys that they’ve outgrown by two decades? We’re seeing augmented reality starting to enhance playtime, a trend that is very likely to continue as brands look for ways to connect real-world, physical play with digital extensions. Another great A/R example at CES was Intel’s booth that featured a demo of LEGO’s Intel-powered augmented reality retail display (http://bit.ly/ycmj3T).

Matt’s Take: Meh. I understand they’re trying to be creative mixing in the physical plane with the game, but it seems like the game could be just as successful without having to attach a foam plane to your tablet. It just seems like an unnecessary step.

Last week I visited the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and there were by my count 25,000 tablets being displayed (that number might be slight hyperbole). To be honest, I really only checked out a few of them – one or two Androids and this Windows tablet being featured by Intel. The hardware wasn’t really what caught my attention with the 2012 tablets, especially since tablets at this point aren’t really differentiating themselves all that much. What caught my attention was how people were using them, talking about them, the overall capabilities that tablets offer and how they’re shaping our media experience. So that led to this interesting question for you tablet owners out there. What’s your favorite experience on your tablet? Is it reading, playing apps, or watching movies? What if I said that some day in the not too distant future, you’ll have a hard time differentiating those experiences because you’ll be doing all three at the same time? And this isn’t a post about some new tablet that allows for multitasking. I’m talking about tablets redefining our media experience and storytelling as a whole.

Take a look at the “CIA: Operation Ajax” application that’s available for the iPad. It tells the story of a real-life CIA operation in Iran that took place in the 50’s. It is currently classified as an “app” in the iTunes App Store, but is that REALLY what it is? To me, that seems to be much more than an app. On the surface, it’s a graphic novel – not exactly something that you would expect to find in the App Store. But once you look deeper into how you interact with it, it becomes something that is almost indefinable. It takes the passive pieces of literature and cinema and mixes them with the active experience of an application. You become fully-immersed in the story because you’re not only reading it, but touching it, listening to a full score and pulling up interactive content that a traditional media experience doesn’t allow. If you think about it, the concept isn’t even that new. Many book publishers have had cross-device experiences where you can get additional information on a website, and DVD extra features have been around for years. Being able to have the entire experience on one device is just so much more immersive. And while Marvel Comics has an app that has minor animations and the iBookstore has enhanced books, this is the most in-depth experience I’ve seen to date.

So what does this mean? In a nutshell, the opportunity for enhanced content exists. Think about reading a novel with its own soundtrack, with character back-story and short movie clips. Imagine watching a movie on your tablet and instead of playing the “where have I seen this guy before” game, a simple tap of the screen on the actor’s face will bring up an actor bio with IMDB integration. Just think about what this will do for the textbook industry where you’ll someday be able to not only read about dissecting a frog, but also dissect one on your tablet without having to smell the formaldehyde. Kermit rejoice! The capabilities are there to one day ditch the passive media experience and embrace a much richer, fully-immersive media experience. At this point, the only question that remains is whether or not content providers are going to make the investment into this enhanced content.

So what do you think? Would you pay a premium price for the enhanced media experience?

We ate entirely too much Sbarro.

Hey, it was a quick meal fix in a pinch and there was so much at CES to view / listen to / play / swipe / poke / drool over, that a microwaved pizza slice was often the best option. The three-to-five minutes that it took to inhale a triangular piece of mediocrity was ample time to reflect on the handful of key themes that kept popping up across the miles of exhibitor floorspace, conference track events and flashy keynote speeches. Back at the office, I managed to gather my tomato-sauce-stained notes and expand on the most prominent dynamics from this year’s CES.

The Year of the ________?

In most years at CES, there is typically one product or category that grabs all the media attention and consumer buzz. Last year tablets were the big craze. But there doesn’t appear to be a clear winner this year. Some may argue that the emergence of Intel’s Ultrabook category won that right with a dizzying number of models released from leading brands, while others may contest that OLED TVs were the next must-have. Aside from those two examples, there weren’t really any “game-changers”. Maybe it wasn’t a product or category at all but a trend known as the “ecosystem”…

Owning the Ecosystem

If we had a nickel for every time the word “ecosystem” was uttered, we’d have a big ol’ bag of nickels. But what does this new buzzword mean? Simply put, the ecosystem is the synergy created by a single provider that can offer users hardware (devices), software (an operating system), content for those devices (music, e-books, games, apps, etc.), and an online marketplace to purchase content – all working together seamlessly. Apple has this structure in place now – you can download a book from iTunes, read it on your iPhone on the train home from work bookmark your spot when your stop arrives, then resume reading from that point on your iPad while reading from the couch when you get home. Because it took Apple years to build and integrate this model seamlessly, they’re in the leadership position and competitors are scrambling to catch up.

In most cases, one single company does not have the necessary resources in place to handle an across-the-board solution so they have naturally turned to strategic partnerships or acquisitions to fill-in the gaps. Last year the industry saw these building blocks being put into place. In February, Nokia and Microsoft announced a strategic alliance where that mobile cog helps Microsoft build out their own ecosystem. In April, Dish acquired Blockbuster’s assets from bankruptcy auction, giving them more content firepower against a slew of competitors in DirecTV, cable networks and Netflix. Finally in October, Sony bought out Ericsson (you’ll see the “Sony Ericsson” brand phased out in favor of “Sony Mobile” in the next few months) in a move that gave Sony complete control of the device end and allows for future integration opportunities with PlayStation 3 and content from the PlayStation Network.

To best understand the marketing implications of this – first marketers must understand how consumers engage with these devices. Long gone are the days when a consumer sat in front of a TV with undivided attention. Today, that consumer could very well be using multiple devices at the same time. It is the responsibility of the agency/advertiser to understand the best way to reach the audience across multiple screens through a comprehensive brand experience. The benefit of these ecosystems is the ability to provide an integrated, one-stop solution across all touchpoints completely customizable to the assets (physical or digital) available. However, the downside is the device fragmentation, where consumers have multiple devices but not from the same manufacturer / ecosystem – then that synergy and compatibility is lost.

Convergence on Convenience

In this ecosystem model, the ability to move from device to device with similar entertainment content is the ideal experience. There is a similar dynamic of interoperability through a “connected” home where various “smart” devices, appliances and systems work together for a more functional, efficient and cost-friendly residence. Imagine being able to get a text from your fridge to remind you to pick up more eggs because it knows that you’re running low and you’re close to the grocery store. Or maybe your bathroom shower mirror is voice controlled with the ability to give you today’s weather and top news stories as you get ready for work.

These experiences are getting closer to reality and as they do the ability to enhance existing behaviors will come with it as well. For example – your fridge then sends you a coupon on premium free-range eggs (because it syncs with your search/browsing history and recognizes that you’re a foodie with a golden heart). Or your bathroom shower mirror gives you headlines from the New York Times that you can bookmark and sync to your phone to read on your drive in – all included with a single NYT subscription.

Such emerging communication channels and opportunities may be a few years off. Fragmentation issues will still remain and there needs to be sufficient consumer demand for market viability but it’s interesting to think about how a truly connected home might affect our day to day lives.

3DTV Today and Beyond

3DTVs aren’t going anywhere. There’s still a battle between active glasses (battery-powered, with a lens shutter) and passive glasses (polarized lenses like the kind you get at the movies). There were only a few autostereoscopic or “glasses-free” models on the exhibition floor – mostly in some beta form from the big CE brands or offered by smaller specialty companies. In past years, the adoption of 3DTV was a “chicken vs. egg” scenario – content was scarce so consumers didn’t want to spend for the extra capability that they would use minimally and content creators and distributors didn’t want to front the cost against a small universe of capable TVs. This was the same growth pattern that HDTV went through about a decade ago. But now, with most new higher-end sets featuring 3D capability (at a marginal cost), there is less consumer trepidation, especially when considering dedicated 3D television channels (ESPN3D, 3Net, etc.) and an ever-increasing slate of 3D movies released each month. All of this points toward consumers becoming more comfortable with 3D engagements.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that the format will lose the luster of its impact entirely – it just needs to be approached with caution. While it’s easy to fall into the trap of creating gimmicky content (i.e. a soccer ball flying out of the TV), the approach should be the same as any other advertising medium where the focus is on the message and communication to your target audience first, not the effects. Designers don’t say “holy crap, we HAVE GOT to put a lens flare on this” then build a concept using that as a starting point. Once that message is crafted, a few ideas to potentially explore are applications that can show size and scale (i.e. various classes of pickup trucks), precise details (i.e. industrial design of a sleek new handset), or use to provide depth to a scene / environment (i.e. panoramic shot of a tourist destination).

What’s Next?

It’ll be interesting to see these dynamics shape up over the next twelve months. It’s highly unlikely that a game-changing product pops up this year. Any announcements from Apple (traditionally absent at CES) can shake things up as well. Who knows if any of the industry’s leading brands will be able to gain traction on Apple’s ecosystem, but it’s certainly an uphill battle. Smart appliances could become more widely adopted as consumers become increasingly tech savvy leading the way for further growth in that category in coming years. 3DTVs and content will continue to grow but by the end of the year will it remain a fun novelty or will it become a serious way to enjoy the home television experience?

As for next year’s CES, making predictions for what we’ll see is always a crapshoot. I’m guessing 3D-capable mobile devices. And hoverboards.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be reporting back on a cross section of our time at CES – everything from industry trends to brilliant new products to mind-blowing apps. Stay tuned.

It’s definitely been a great start to CES. We primarily hit the conference track panels yesterday with some brief time on the exhibitor floor in between.

One key theme we kept hearing was around the idea of convergence. While this is nothing new, as we continue to move towards an always-connected, always-open-for-content lifestyle, it’s something that isn’t going away anytime soon. Technology brands are increasingly looking to own both hardware and software with a way to augment content across their own devices. Apple has been incredibly successful with this structure and many brands are late to the party and undergoing the associated growing pains. And while it was an ongoing theme, this goes beyond the idea of content across multiple screens and devices. We’re moving closer and closer to a day when all of our devices and appliances are going to be connected and communicating with one another.

From our brief time on the exhibitor floor, it’s apparent that 2012 won’t feature any game-changing products. We caught a glimpse at LG’s 55″ 3D OLED, which is every bit as crave-worthy as you’d imagine and Sharp’s portable flat screens which are every bit as head-scratching as you’d imagine but nothing has really owned the show so far. After seeing some of the big guys, we’re thinking that if there’s going to be anything really ground-breaking, it’s going to be from some of the smaller exhibitors.

Looking forward to the next few days; we will have plenty to report back on this week.

This week a small cadre of AMP’s most tech-minded individuals (nerds) will be going to the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. And fortunately for all of you, what happens there will not stay there, but instead be blogged, live-tweeted, filmed, twit-pic’d, and recapped for your viewing pleasure. While this isn’t our first CES rodeo, this will be the first year that we’ll be covering our trip there in such detail. Here’s a quick outlook of some of the things we’re looking forward to seeing next week:

Microsoft’s Last Keynote

We’re praying that it had more to do with Microsoft’s product cycle timing and not because they heard we were coming and decided that the show jumped the shark.

The next gen versions of everything

Keeping our fingers crossed for hover boards, but will certainly settle for anything mobile, makes great use of social media, or can be used in an event atmosphere to improve a branded experience.  2011 was the year of the tablet, 2012 is destined to be the year of the Ultrabook. Having a sneak preview of the new generation of sleeker notebooks from our friends at Intel has us super psyched about the new ones that will be coming out in 2012.

TV Wars

In the past few years, mainstream TV innovation has been a mixed bag. HDTV costs have dropped quite a bit. 3DTVs have become more accessible (and all signs point to that trend continuing) but additional features such as connectivity and applications have been met with lukewarm response. This year it sounds like LG and Samsung may be unveiling their latest OLED (Organic LED) TVs – a display type that has the potential to greatly reduce TV width and more importantly, cost. Additionally, it will also be interesting to keep an eye on MDTV (Mobile Digital TV) that hasn’t quite picked up yet, but could become more widely adopted in 2012.

Fewer Wires

Wireless could be a big theme with more advances coming across a suite of consumer electronics from mobile phones hooked up with NFC (Near Field Communications) to allow mobile payments, Bluetooth 4.0 and a sneak peek at inductive charging.

The Mobile Apps Showdown

We’re cool with anything that makes use of an Applause-O-Meter. The basic idea is that developers have 2 minutes to demo their app and audience applause determines the winner. Not a thing you can hate about that. We’re also going to try to get a few video interviews with some of the ones that pique our interest and relay them back to you all – so that will be fun.

Feel free to follow #CES2012 throughout the week or stalk us via the usual channels (@AMP_Agency, Facebook.com/BrandAMPlification) to get live updates, photos and videos. 

China is getting ready to take on SEO in a major way and is ready to invest major dollars towards a fast growing industry according to the latest report released by Nasdaq. Baidu, the biggest search engine in China which holds a massive 84% market share is reportedly investing as much as $470 million dollars now through the end of 2015 into search engine optimization (SEO).

Baidu plans to develop an industry which will train as many as 100,000 new search engine specialists as part of the game plan. The ultimate goal is to help both small and larger companies expand and grow their businesses through adaptation of SEO. With 485 million users in China, there is a huge opportunity for growth in an emerging market and Baidu (www.baidu.com) expects that by planning the adaptation of SEO, it will help raise awareness and increase usage for its online paid advertising services.

This news is certainly quite interesting. It’s pretty amazing how much the SEO industry has evolved over the years versus what it used to be at the very early stages. What used to be an underground, rarely talked about approach to simply making websites rank higher in Google, has transformed to a whole new level of mainstream.

The demand for SEO in the United States has been growing fast, as competition keeps growing and getting tougher. Search engine marketing is a crucial element in 2011 and will continue to become even more important throughout the years, no matter what type of business you operate. Baidu is recognizing the need and wants to set the standard in China. And with such an enormous market share, I have no doubt they will accomplish what they intend, while creating thousands of new jobs in the industry.

It seems the department store push for QR code integration has continued. You may remember last year when Macy’s launched Backstage Pass. Supported by in-store “how-to-scan” posters, Backstage Pass codes let shoppers view fashion tips, designer interviews and other video content based on the store’s holiday wares.

Fast forward to the 2011 shopping season. Department store giant JCPenney believes ‘tis the season to try their hand at QR code integration. Supported by the “Who’s your Santa?” advertising campaign, “Santa Tags” decked with QR Codes will allow gift buyers to record personal voice messages up to one minute long.

Instead of simply connecting you to a URL, Santa Tags QR codes create a very merry mobile experience that connect you with friends and family in a fun, surprising and intimate way. And let’s face it: you can say a lot more in one minute than you can in a Tweet, on a lo-def paper gift tag or a pre-canned holiday card. This innovation in personalization has the potential to make holiday spirits and sales soar.

This new use for QR codes doesn’t just add value to customers’ lives, it gives JCPenney an edge on the competition. Customers can buy gifts in a click, but Santa Tags give them an extra reason to step away from the computer and into the store – their store.

From heartfelt wishes to inside jokes, every gift can be accompanied by a super-personal stamp – even if the gifter shipped it across the globe or picked it up last-minute. So while Dad may already have 50 ties, he’ll always remember #51 because it came with a special voice message from his little girl.

Indeed I think this season’s Santa Tag will challenge shoppers to “think outside the tag” and find the time to step into a JCPenney to make a purchase. Now, what do you say?

How Santa Tags work: The gifter scans the Santa Tag QR code using a smartphone, records a personal message and attaches the Santa Tag to the gift. When the giftee scans the code with their mobile phone, the message plays. Holiday cheer enjoyed by all!

Now-a-days user generated content (UGC) is something that advertisers value because it’s living proof that an audience is engaging with the content of a site, but shy away from because it always ultimately ends up as an off topic, vulgar argument and can be a risk for clients that value brand safety … which is all of them.

Whether it’s a finance site with a “high class” audience with an average Household Income (HHI) of $200 million+, or something like the Huffington Post (a personal favorite), where college kids browse articles and fire off opinions 24/7 (especially during O-Chem 102); UGC always inevitably ends up as a battle between some guy named Vector901 and some guy named Sparticus463 which could not be more off topic and is riddled with name calling and intelligence – (let’s just call it, questioning).

But a recent whitepaper shed some light on the type of brands that should not only attempt to surround UGC, but also actively participate in UGC – business to business brands (B2B).

In the B2B world, UGC is not riddled with expletives and put downs, because B2B UGC (a little alphabet soup) is primarily used as an information sharing tool, where professionals share business experiences, advice, and best practices. Research shows that on average, B2B professionals in the IT space spend 5.86 hours per week consuming or participating in UGC and Social Media as it relates to work. Almost more than they utilize Editorial Media (think CNN.com, WSJ.com and other publishers) 3.81 and vendor content (think brands) 3.41 combined.

B2B UGC is growing in popularity because more and more B2B professionals are relying on fellow experts within the same industry, perhaps with more experience, for product evaluation, advice, and recommendations. 64.4% of IT professionals surveyed claimed that UGC helped them solve problems in the workspace through experience based advice, whereas only 14.6% claimed that Social Media and UGC do not help them do their job better at all. Think of it as an extension of the office, if you have a question that Jim the cubicle over can’t answer, rather than offer up your best guess or take the risk of learning from experience, check out a reliable collaborative site and see what other professionals stuck in a similar situation have done, and find out what the outcome was.

So what does this mean?

It means as a B2B brand, do not be misled to think that the demand for your input in social and collaborative sites is not there. Instead see this as an opportunity to take an industry leading role as an active participant on collaborative sites and social networks where UGC lives. You don’t need to be an industry innovator constantly publishing new content and insight to have a presence on a site where relevant professionals (aka future customers) turn to seek advice. 58.1% of professionals surveyed look to Social Media and UGC sites to build skills and expertise in their field.

When you do utilize UGC however, also know that of the members surveyed, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the most important in regards to Social Media & UGC participation from brands, that the two highest ranking categories, both scoring at 4.2, were transparency and openness about the brand involvement, and responsiveness to member questions, tips and troubleshooting.

So take a passive role but engage with your audience, answer questions when asked,  provide insight when available, and don’t think that social media and UGC is just for brands like Old Spice and high schoolers.

Source: Top 5 Trends in B2B Social Media Usage: What Every Marketer Should Know – White Paper – Toolbox.com 2010

In a move as confusing as his 1994 foray into gangsta’ rap, Hammer (formerly MC Hammer) is launching his own search engine called WireDoo. After all, nothing is more “gangsta” than droppin’ fresh new algorithms across the current search engine landscape.

All weirdness aside, Hammer claims that WireDoo will spotlight “deep search,” and topics closely related to search queries. For instance, if somebody searches for “Hammer’s mansion,” they might also get results for debt consolidation and insanity medication.

When Hammer spoke at the Web 2.0 summit in San Francisco, he helped explain relationship inspired search by comparing it to gathering home buying information. If someone were to search for “homes in Cambridge, MA,” they might also receive information regarding area schools, neighborhoods, and other city related information. Whether WireDoo is successful or not, Hammer has successfully come up with an idea that is unique to its competitors.

If the celebrity of Hammer is enough to get people using WireDoo, the premise is interesting enough that in a best case scenario, WireDoo could end up merging with an established engine. Granted, it will be important to actually wait until the engine is launched, but the fact that it will enter the market with a lot of hype could give it a fighting chance initially. Think about it, for as important as search is in our daily lives, it has had little celebrity influence….until now.

*Disclaimer- The rest of this article contains no truth whatsoever:

One odd thing I noticed about WireDoo was that every #1 ranking featured anchor text stating the words “U Can’t Touch This.” The anchor text linked to the song on iTunes.

I soon became concerned that Hammer might only have his own interests in mind with his new business endeavor. For instance, when somebody searches for “Reebok Pumps,” the 1^st search result is a link to his song “Pumps and a Bump” on iTunes.  I became even more suspicious when I did a search for “kidnapping,” and all that came up was a link to buy his song “Have You Seen Her?”

Come on Hammer…that’s just inappropriate!

When I typed in “financial disaster,” it was evident that one of his developers played a joke on him, because all that came up was the following image:

Hammer will also be launching his own analytics platform to coincide with the launch of WireDoo. WireDoo’s analytics platform differs from the likes of Google and Bing in the way that it provides an easy to understand grading system that lets webmasters see exactly how their site is performing. Hammer’s grading system is as follows:

2 Legit 2 Quit = Outstanding

It’s All Good = Good

Work This = Needs Improvement

Pray = This Site Sucks

You guessed it – each grade (song title) contains a link to buy the song on iTunes.

In conclusion, if your search and analytics results have been void of all things Hammer, “Here Comes the Hammer” to the rescue.