Social moves so fast, you won't believe how much it's changed. Got a Dailymotion video channel? Use it to create a Smart TV app. Check out Twitter's new media blog, dedicated to innovative social promotions in real time. See why an IKEA product got lots of online love—to IKEA's great dismay. And learn whether branding can actually give life meaning. Skim for... nirvana?
Giving innovation a hand. Honda's "Hands" made a splash on the AdAge viral video chart this week, taking No. 3 after launch with over 2.5 million views. The social media darling walks you through Honda's past and (maybe) future achievements, all between two hands—a metaphor for how curiosity and creativity can advance mankind. Meanwhile, Samsung continues to hold positions 1 and 2 for "Magna Carta Holy Grail" and "Looking 4 Myself."
Make killer videos, full stop. CNN's Heather Kelly explains how to make solid videos on Instagram and Vine. Learn what competitive advantages set the two apart, and how to maximize each platform. Of course, there's strong advice that works well for either: Choose subjects with care (and by platform subculture), combine shots to tell a story, ensure your hands are steady, and explore stop motion—which is experiencing a revival, thanks to the teeny-weeny video craze.
See Malms get hammered. IKEA circulated the social Web this week, but not for anything it did. HotMalm.com is a parody porn site (totally safe for work) that features its Malm line of bedframes in multiple states of suggestive... Malminess? The Hot Malm team was "inspired by the beauty of Malms ever since we first encountered them in college" and wants to "share Malms of every size and color with the world." Clicking on a photo takes you directly to the IKEA website. The retailer, however, likes the joke a lot less and is working to [take the site down IKEA's Eva Steel says, "It is essential and very important to us that our customers feel safe and know when it's IKEA talking," and adds that HotMalm may be perceived as insulting. Well... there goes our Malm-on-Malm resource.
You, on the big screen. Soon Smart TVs will be as much a part of your social repertoire as Facebook or Twitter. Opera's launched TV Snap, a tool that lets anybody transform a DailyMotion channel into a Smart TV app. For now DailyMotion is the only partner, but we're sure YouTube will come knocking as brands and content producers start showing interest. Our overshare du jour: when we got a Smart TV, the first video we watched was Sad Cat Diary... in HD.
Opera TV Snap par opera
Take a bow. We loved this Bill Connolly article about how improv comedy made him a better marketer. Tips include incorporating improv's "Yes, and..." philosophy (versus "No, but..."), letting your idea breathe, and maintaining character even as the situation evolves rapidly. Don't you feel like a better marketer already?
Pretty in Pinterest. Nordstrom's amping up its Pinterest commitment by adding the symbolic P to in-store products that have generated a lot of Pins. Think of them as tiny badges of honor: the shoe rack's response to a restaurant's Zagat sticker. Nordstrom's Colin Johnson says, "It's our fastest growing social channel, so we wanted to integrate the feedback that we're getting from our Pinterest community."
From Smart TVs, the jump to social TV is short. Twitter's launched a new blog dedicated to innovative uses of social for TV, music, sports, government, journalism, and other categories that traditionally favor broadcast (and in the case of TV, actually embody it). Learn how Jay-Z tantalizes tweeters, or how Michelle Obama gave social followers a glimpse of her African trip. We like this visualization of Fan reactions after the Miami Heat's NBA playoffs victory, as well as these gripping cast tweets for Under the Dome.
Panic heightens for those trapped, who will survive? Watch the latest full ep: https://t.co/ap1YAxx6Tv #UnderTheDome pic.twitter.com/OgOS6coQq7
—Under The Dome (@UnderTheDomeCBS) July 2, 2013
Social goes a WOM way. An Internet Advertising Bureau study's found that 90% of consumers would recommend a brand after interacting with it on social media. Four in five were more inclined to buy after being exposed to a brand's social media, and 83% were happy to trial run a product. So while naysayers may say nobody wants to befriend a company, consider that crossing users' paths, and leaving a good impression, never hurts, either. It doesn't even require holding hands.
Your brand: the key to enlightenment? Community manager Chuck Kent of {grow} talks to social experts to see whether social branding can actually give life meaning for some, in the same way religion or family does. Insights from people like Mark Schaefer, Jonathan Baskin, and Grégory Pouy may put your work into perspective. Opinions swing from "Brands are social movements! Brands can be revolutions!" (Rabbi Shevack) to "In the future [brands] will play a lesser role in the consumer's search for meaning, for the simple reason that few brands are working on their core value" (Greg Pouy). Have we transcended yet?
