Digital Hive

How real are we in virtual realities?

  I came across a great piece on trendwatching.com covering online gaming, metaverses and all sorts of online being spaces. There’s some cool work being done by marketers in this emerging environment, connecting with people in ways that enrich their gaming experiences.  Case studies, such as the efforts by P&G and Sprite in Habbo Hotel, led me to wonder whether or not brand trial and even preferences in metaverses could be expected to transfer to real life behavior.  Or could someone prefer Mountain Dew while his alter-ego avatar regularly drinks Sprite? And does this even matter if the avatars are paying – with a virtual currency convertible to US dollars – for the virtual product, as they apparently are for American Apparel clothing in Second Life.  Imagine this for a moment: marketing to both a real world population and a population of avatars, where both represent valuable market share to fight for…

And perhaps if people create avatars with regard to attributes they like or aspire to, might avatars be a truer expression of their creators’ desires than are their real world characters?  And might people, behind the guise of their avatars, express certain feelings in uniquely direct and truthful ways?  Research is already being done by introducing products or messages into the metaverse and seeing how the virtual population receives them.  American Apparel is planning on test marketing its first line of jeans in its Second Life store this summer, two months before they're available in actual stores.

Making the most of 1%

Turns out, there’s yet another exception to the good ole 80-20 rule. When it comes to the “creator-to-consumer” ratio on the internet, it’s more like the “89-10-1 rule”. 

In the words of the Guardian's Charles Arthur: “It's an emerging rule of thumb that suggests that if you get a group of 100 people online then one will create content, 10 will "interact" with it (commenting or offering improvements) and the other 89 will just view it.”

This so-called “1%” rule seems to roughly describe creator-to-consumer dynamics of sites like YouTube, Wikipedia, and Yahoo Groups. Shocking? Perhaps, when compared to earlier web metrics that placed more confidence in the 80-20 rule.

Yet when you compare 1% to the creator-to-consumer ratio of mass media, be it the Circus Maximus audiences of yore (250,000), or American Idol viewers of today (34 million), it’s a pretty darn impressive figure. It also becomes a quite powerful ratio when you consider current YouTube hits amounting to 100 million videos per day.

The Office - Webisodes We Like

The New York Times - staying on their game - offered their opinion on the bite-sized summer webisodes being aired by The Office. We had offered a pat on the back to NBC back in March for their foray onto the web during the slow summer months. And, still believe it's a good idea....but I'm with the NYT in feeling like it's a ripe idea poorly executed.

Perhaps Steve Carrell's contract doesn't cover the spots - but his absence along with those of the marquis characters leaves the avid Office fan feeling unsatiated. It's like the mini-chiclet of television wrapped in a big shiny package, emblazoned with advertising. Heavy on the ads and light on substance. There certainly isn't enough material to draw in new and perhaps younger viewers via the web, nor are they effectively feeding the interest of the fan base..... I'm left wondering just what exactly they were trying to accomplish?

The best anti-smoking ad ever?

Hats off to AdRants for calling our attention to this wonderful execution (click on the visual above to view full size). http://www.adrants.com/2006/06/grave-site-smoking-room-delivers-powerful.php

Another blog mentioning this creative (Coolz0r) identifies the insight for this creative: “You’re the weak link, you’re killing yourself. You’re going to die. Should you chose to ignore all these messages and still want to go to the crappy, smelly corner the law has left for you in the basement of the building or somewhere in a dark shed, you’ll be hunted there as well. This ambient installment tries to bring the message across that when you smoke, you’re dying. No, you’re already dead, you just don’t know it yet."

Brilliant. There's something very 6 feet under about this - which I like.

The industry apparently agrees - this campaign was awarded with a bronze lion for ‘Outdoor’ in Cannes.

Additional executions/visuals are here: http://blog.coolz0r.com/2006/06/29/smoking-kills/

The Lonely American: Still Lonely

Today's NYTimes has a great article about a recent study which has the disturbing finding that on average most American adults have only 2 people they can talk to about the most important issues in their lives, and 25% have no close confidants at all. Read the whole article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/02/weekinreview/02fountain.html?hp&ex=1151899200&en=99631f24527e5dc4&ei=5094&partner=homepage (reg. req'd)

The internet is enabling busy people to connect more quickly and frequently and this is helping to replicate good old fashioned face to face contact; John Horrigan, associate director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Recent Pew surveys, found that "when you contact family by e-mail, you share important and serious things."

More interesting from a social networking marketing perspective: Horrigan's research has shown that the Internet is increasingly being used during life's "major moments" — to gather information or advice when making a big financial investment, deciding where to live, or choosing a college for a child. The research has shown that "people were more likely to get help through their social network" for those kinds of decisions.

Nice to see corroboration of what we think is one of the biggest leverage points for marketers today.

The Target of Boutique Hotel Chains?

Snaps to Three Minds @ Organic's coverage of our client Hotel Indigo (http://organic.typepad.com/threeminds/)

It's exciting to think Indigo could attain Target-scaled success (Three Minds' suggestion).

It's a unique concept with a smart positioning and wonderful marketing - the campaign is all haikus, because haikus embody the wit and serenity Hotel Indigo aims to deliver to business travelers seeking more than the usual "beige" business hotel. Click the visual above to see one of the haikus and visit the Indigo website to see more (http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/in/1/en/home).