Google+ is rolling out a new interface that replaces the black utility bar across the top of the page. In the video, it show how elegantly it cascades to reveal all of the different services that integrate into G+.

Lovely or Scary?

Well I decided to take inventory of all of the Google services I’m using and what it means to my privacy. Here’s what I came up with:

//Gmail
They know the names, emails and numbers of all of my contacts. They know every single correspondent to/from each and every one of them.

//Calendar
They know where I’m going to be and when

// Documents
They know the formulas for my estimating and the board minutes from my meetings

// Bookmarks
They know everything I find important enough to save

// Chrome
They know my entire web surfing history

// Maps
They know the routes I’ve taken

// YouTube
They know how many times I’ve viewed the cute kitten videos

// Picasa (only because of G+)
Now they’ll have my kids birthday pictures

// Latitude
Ok. I maybe checked in once. But chances are it will be integrated into the G+ experience

// Google Voice
They know the who and time every inbound and outbound calls and the transcript of every voice mail and text sent to my phone

// Reader
They know what I”m passionate about learning

// Music
They know what songs I listen to and which ones I love

// AdSense
They know the behaviors of the visitors to my wife’s site

// Analytics
The traffic of my site and nearly every one of my clients

// Google+
This is the glue. The master plan. They now know who my friends are and what circle I’d categorize them. Where I check in and when. What I like and what I love. I’m going to +1 my world.

// OH YEAH…and Search!
Every keyword I’ve ever searched

SCARY, EH?

WHY DO WE DO THIS?

All of these services have enriched my life with their convenience and delight. But it’s shocking to retrospectively look back and take inventory of all I’ve paid for these free services. These bytes of my life are now terabytes of my existence. And people are worried about Facebook’s privacy policy?

I’m ok with the price I’m paying. I have nothing to hide or to be embarrassed about.

But darn it, Google…

……don’t you DARE hurt me!

The Bad News First

Media companies need to realize that going digital is not just about turning picas into pixels. It’s about sparking a relevant dialogue that is wrapped around content delivered at the right time on the right device that empowers that user experience.
The best example of what NOT to do is my hometown’s newspaper, The Columbus Dispatch (locally owned along w/ TV & Radio Stations). By now you’ve heard of Ted Williams, the homeless man with the golden voice. Well, the paper had YouTube remove the video due to copyright claims. True as it may be, had the video not been posted, it would never have gone viral. They insisted on viewing the video on THEIR site in hopes of benefiting from the ad impressions. Hours later after backlash from twitterverse, the video was back up, but now on the paper’s YouTube channel (great!).
But this “mine, mine, mine” philosophy about content is the same antiquated approach the music industry had about MP3 downloads. As soon as they realized that the horse and buggy industry was gone, they adapted and are reemerging and embracing the digital space.

The Good News

Media companies power is NOT in controlling the content, but rather creating, curating, validating and distributing the content. Think about it. You’re pitching a company on a big project and you need facts. What’s more reputable – a quote from my blog or The New York Times? Media company’s editorial process means the content is well written and based on fact. Their access to the insiders of a story is deep and wide which ultimately means better content.

The Inconvenient Truth

This is NOT 1990 anymore.
The internet changed EVERYTHING.
Facebook changed EVERYTHING.
Twitter changed EVERYTHING.
Content is everywhere so convincing viewers that your content is better is like Gary Vaynerchuck convincing the guy chugging Boone’s Farm that a $50 of wine tastes better! YOU know it’s better! I know it’s better! But to the Boone’s Farm guy?…Not so much. And even then, I’m not convinced it’s worth what your charging. I am convinced, however, that when I subscribe to a newspaper I get a tangible object delivered to me. The exchange of value is simple to demonstrate. But content delivered to me on screen?? It’s not the same.

What to Do?

Here’s where I think media companies are missing the boat…ARCHIVES! This is where people can and will be willing to pay. Imagine if you will, a freemium subscription model for media companies where they BREAK the free news that goes viral because they empowered consumers to share as they see fit under creative commons. They get the traffic as long as the story is hot. They’re on their home turf doing what you do best -breaking important news. NOW, let’s say a year later, I’m writing a report to submit to a client and this story has the facts I need to cite. THIs is where I’d be willing to pay for premium content. I’ll pay market value for that news story. The price is set by demand tracked by their analytics and social sentiment. So one story may be $50, while another may be $1. The best part? Subscribers get the story for free! Think about it, pay $50 for 1 story or for a 1 year subscription. The choice is obvious. Now your web site is a backchannel for all stories and the breaking story is the gateway. News breaks that relates to archived story? Sell it!!

In A Nut Shell

• Your content is not as valuable as you think.
• Your content does not belong to you. Liberate your content to the masses and the masses will thank you! Ask Ted Williams.
• Create user experiences that are designed for the device in which the content is consumed. Repurposing content is a no no.
• Don’t treat your digital ad inventory like the red-headed step child. It has value if you hire someone to monetize it to it’s potential.
• Forget everything you think you know or you will be a black smith serving horseless society.
• What you learn about digital this will be old news by evening drive time so don’t just break news, break new ground.

Remember when @mrskutcher only had 28,784 followers on Twitter? Neither do I.  But that’s the point about Dailybooth.com! It’s like the wild west all over again in that it completely levels the playing field.  Everyone starts at 0 followers.

Get Kozy with @Adventuregirl

THIS is your second chance to connect with the people on Twitter you follow who have hundreds of thousands (or millions @MrsKutcher) of followers.  If you’re lucky, they’ll have only…say…72 followers on Dailybooth like @Adventuregirl who has 1,494,734 on twitter! Spark a dialogue with your favorite Twitter peeps BEFORE they reach the same number of followers. Who knows, maybe you’ll get a follow back on Twitter and some link love, right @adventuregirl ?  (call me < cheesy wink>).

WTH is DailyBooth??!

I first heard of Dailybooth during the TechCrunch Disrupt in March 2010. Back then, I signed up a poked around but didn’t get hooked until recently.  Here’s the gist: remember how much fun you used to have jumping in to a photo booth and snapping some goofy shots with your pals/girlfriends?  You’d then show off the snaps to your friends or put them in your locker for others to see?  Well now imagine doing that with the web as your locker.  When Twitter first launched they were educating users to “tell us what you’re doing” when in reality we were using it to tell people what we’re THINKING!  Dailybooth, in contrast, is “SHOW us what you’re doing”.  But the real fun and audience engagement comes with the replies.  You’re not just writing a reply, you are “miming” your reply in a photo response.  Following some of these streams can be absolutely addicting and hilarious!!! Making new friends and exploring is easy.  Follow the live stream and start connecting with people that seam interesting but don’t be “that creepy person”!!!

Sorry Kiddies, Secret’s Out

Just like in the early years of  Facebook, Dailybooth is a really younger demographic.  I mean REALLY young. Not sure of the policy is on minimum age, but you almost feel like a perv at first.  As a dad of two young daughters some of the provocative poses (though PG-rated) may be a bit awkward and even unsettling. But I felt better after seeing some real celebs more my age and the following they’ve developed and how it really is a GREAT experience and a fantastic way to express your creativity and individuality. So, sorry kids!  Here come your parents and aunts and uncles to ruein the party. And up next….<insert horror music and scream> the ADVERTISERS!!

Squeeze Dailybooth into your Social Media Playbook

Advertising! Marketing! That’s why I’m writing about it today.  Dailybooth is a hidden gem just like the Twitter in the early days where you can still have the first mover advantage.  What makes Dailybooth so interesting is that it’s incredibly quick and easy (you’d be amazed at how I agonize over carefully choosing my 140 characters)!  You just sit in front of your web cam and snap away (or upload),  type as little as a one-word comment and pick sharing options of  Twitter and/or Facebook or what I like to call the photo-mojo.  Compared to the other popular social media sites, Dailybooth is pure entertainment and the easiest to create content which means there will be a ton of content and it will be very entertaining and easy to go viral. It really is positioned nicely among the other social media sites (see below).

Get the QR Codes Out

Get people to show you some love using using QR Codes!  You can cross promote to other sites like this!

Get em flyin’ your colors

Studies have shown that people LOVE to brag about their latest shopping finds.  Get them to snap a photo with your product and post on Dailybooth then reward them with coupons or discounts.  Just get the ball rolling with a few simple rules and the crowds take over.

Send them on a Scavenger Hunt

Don’t forget, “boothers” are not tethered to their desktops!

Theres an iPhone app and you can also email photos to your profile.  So get them engaged in activities and interacting with your brand at your location or get them to put lampshades on their heads at your events.  Set up a Dailybooth BOOTH at the event and let the frenzy begin!

These are just a couple of ideas.  So what do you think?  Will Dailybooth become as big as Twitter?

Is anyone old enough to remember Merry-Go-Round clothing store? If you are old enough to remember, you’ll probably chuckle when I say it was my first job right after I quit Burger King at the tender age of 16.  I LOVED working in retail. You should have seen my skinny tie and bandanna collection!  I went on to manage Benetton stores all through college (this is the 80′s folks – United Colors of Benetton, remember?), then later worked for The Limited stores.  I STILL LOVE RETAIL!  In fact, I can outlast my tween daughters on a day at the mall!

I also LOVE digital.  So a couple of years ago, when I first heard about Augmented Reality(AR) apps and saw QR Codes and glyphs in action, my first thought went straight to how they can be used in a retail environment.  What is commonplace today in Japan is shaping the vision of the future in the U.S. with great videos showing  how the analogue and digital worlds can be integrated into a unified user experience.  Great right? Well not exactly.

As I was shopping with my daughters today when we stumbled into The Gap.  Much to my surprise I see a QR Code on a display (only 1 in the entire store).  I of course was curious and got out my favorite QR reader on my  iPhone, NeoReader (try it, it will work from this web page). First of all, the display was on a table that was about 2 feet high.  I debated internally if I wanted to get on a knee in the middle of The Gap to scan, but in the end, my curiosity got the best of me. It took a second to register the QR tag on my screen but I finally got the happy “ding” and my browser launched!  My excitement was completely squashed when I saw this…

NooooOOoooo…. what a let down and major #fail.  So we’re not quite here yet are we?   But it did start my wheels turning?  What are the killer apps for QR codes in a retail experience?

KILLER APPS

Engage me

It’s easy to go with a simple link to a product page.  But what are you going to ask me to do next? Give me social tools to share my adoration for this product.  Let me save this in a favorites list that I can refer to later or email to my Aunt Helen as a hint for my birthday. Think and engage!

QR Codes Clicks = Purchase Intent

Don’t use QR codes to show them 5 angles of the product they can hold in their hand.  Give them details that will help inform their decision and feel smart about their purchase.

Listen to Your Customer

This is your chance!  Your customer clicked on the QR code indicating interest.  100 clicks on product A, but only sold 1 today? Why?? They are holding their mobile device and in the perfect scenario to provide you feedback.  Ask one question – “do you like this? yes/no”. Feeling lucky? Ask “why/why not?”! Feed this data back to your buyers.  Just imagine the data you could capture if this was a branded app where you know the demographic profile of the respondent! WOW this can be powerful.

Make it Easy

It was interesting to me that I had to think before I scanned! Me, the uber geek was contemplating NOT scanning a QR code.  I have to admit, I felt like a dork scanning a QR code and it was only worse that I had to kneel down to do it. Place codes at eye level for signage.

Commit to the QR

Train the staff on what the QR tags are.  Give them talking points at two levels for the novice and the expert.   This becomes part of your brand experience. You NEVER want to have your associate say “I don’t know” even if it’s NOT a sku.

Cross-Media Optimize the Campaign

Use the QR Code to launch to the video of the TV spot that features the product their holding in their hands and vice versa.  Use QR codes on print ads with a call to action the rewards the customer with a promotional offer then list nearby stores based on their location.  And if you REALLY want to get crazy think about linking  location based systems (LBS) such as Foursquare, Gowalla and even now Facebook Places.  Why not have them checkin via QR code?

The QR Opt-in

Email marketing is not dead! Ask for their email address and reward them with an offer that they can redeem in the store at that moment!  What do you think the redemption rate of that coupon would be?  What was your cost of acquisition and the lifetime ROI of that one simple click??

Beyond the Sign

Think of new places to put QR codes.  Put them on the price tag with product specific information.  Heck, put them on the LABEL.  When that tween goes home after a day at the mall, they invite their friends over for an impromptu fashion show! Empower their friends to scan the tag then snap photos of their friend wearing that item to share.  Just imagine them posting their new outfits on DailyBooth.com holding the price tag w/ the QR code. Their friends can instantly scan and engage the exact product with the nearest store location.

Educate Me

Most people will walk by and never notice the squiggly squares.  Talk up the codes!  Tell your customers about QR codes and why they will enhance their shopping experience. GONE is the day of “can I help you find something?”!

Inform Me

When I was in the dressing room today, I needed a different size shirt.  How amazing would it be if I could scan the QR code on the price tag to see if the RIGHT size was even in stock? Make the QR code a customer service tool, NOT just a marketing tool.

APP KILLERS

• Don’t put you QR Codes knee level!!
• Broken QR codes are NOT good for  your brand
• Don’t link a generic webpage.  Create an in-app experience designed specifically for mobile browsing
• Commit to the QR code or don’t do it

Admittedly, QR Codes can be borderline gimmicky.  Think gimmick, you’ll get gimmick.  But on the other hand if you can think of ways that ENHANCE the brand experience in a very simple way you can bridge the analogue world with the digital to build loyalty, engage, spark dialogue and spread word of mouth.

What do you think? Are there any great application of QR codes you can share?

DIGITAL BRILLIANCE HISTORY LESSON

Now I know what it must have felt like to watch the lunar landing!  Watching the twitterverse buzz over the @oldspice’s video replies to tweets and comments from across the web made me feel like I was witnessing (in real-time) an epic paradigm shift and birth of the benchmark for which all ad campaigns will be measured for years to come.

The first seismic shift happened in 1999 during Super Bowl XXXIII with the Victoria’s Secret’s spot promoting their Webcast fashion show. Then in 2001, BMW created a stir with their high quality film shorts featuring world-class directors and in the process building mindshare on the desktop with their branded video player.  Even still, these campaigns were more about branding and less about action (and even less about interaction).  In 2004 Burger King’s Subservient Chicken was the first campaign to successfully deploy a viral tactic that was launched from just a handful of the ad agency’s staff to grow to 5 million visits in the first 5 days.  Dove’s 2006 Campaign for Real Beauty that was elegantly executed and honest and it too created some buzz.

But these campaigns were all BT (before twitter).

Since Twitter meteoric rise, marketers and advertisers have been trying to figure out how to leverage it’s potential.  In a world where ad agency’s traditional leadership relies on mass-media to move the needle, this brilliant Wieden+Kennedy Old Spice campaign shook that suits out of their office chairs to face the nemesis – the web and more pointedly social media!  Nothing demonstrates this more than comparing AXE’s efforts to Old Spice’s. Let’s face it, this campaign has left AXE looking like your father’s Oldsmobile.

ALMOST PERFECT

In spite of its brilliance I still wanted more!

Mobile

Where’s my mobile app? We want more!! I’d be curious to see how many queries for “Old Spice” were done in the iTunes store! How about an Augmented Reality app the scans a QR tag on either a POP display or Print ad that launches a Old Spice guy video related to the printed piece.

PR

I want to know who @Jsbeals is! I want meet his girlfriend! This is HISTORY!!! Get the mainstream media to write about the power of social media with the angle of interviewing some of the real-people to whom you replied.

POP

Where’s the POP support for the campaign??!!! Gerard makes a great point in his blog post!

Location Based Engagement

How about FourSquare/Gowalla? When I checked-in at Target on FourSquare I was hoping to see an offer to drive my purchase.

Email

Build a subscriber list, get my name and home address and send me something amazing in the mail!

NOT SO PERFECT

It looks as if AXE left the Social Media strategy to the PR firm Edlemen.  Which brings up another debate – who should OWN social media?  PR, Client, Ad Agency?  If nothing else, this campaign has made a compelling case for the ad agency to lead. I believe the answer should be dictated by the client’s situation, resources, and passion for the channel. If you are BP, uh yeah, PR should be manning the social media ship.  But certainly in this circumstance, the payoff is HUGE when the ad agency leads.  No matter who’s leading, the big lesson is that for a campaign to reach its potential digital/social media must be on equal footing with TV.  Amazing things can happen if you do, and if you don’t, well… look for yourself.

OLD SPICE VS. AXE STRATEGY SHOOTOUT

Launch Date	~ Sept 2009	~ Jan 2010
Brand Voice	Spokesperson: Old Spice Guy (Actor, Isaiah Mustafa) Old Spice did a great job of humanizing the brand in a way that plays well to social media.  You know your talking to a brand, but you feel like the brand is your fiend. There’s the critical ingredient of brand authenticity perfectly mixed with entertainment that you feel compelled to root for Old Spice.	Spokesperson: Jennie Averbrook (Edlemena PR Employee) AXE isn’t driving the voice posts because posts are sparse. And when they appear, they tend to be very promotionally driven. Occasionally, there will be replies to conversations, sometimes even defending the brand. They do a good job of putting a human face in the conversation, but it almost seems like they looked around and said – “Oh, you have a facebook profile? Ok, you are in charge of our client’s brand on Facebook”.
Features	Talk to OS Guy Leave comments to Old Spice in hopes of getting a video message. Hillarious responses. Store Buy Merch including “I’m on a horse” tying back to the TV campaign. I’d like to see the merch go viral too.  Perhaps do a deal with Threadless.com – unleash the masses! Downloads Yawn. #fail where’s OS Guy? Interns Seems like leftovers from previous campaign. Pointless and diluted the OS Guy experience. #fail It would have been cool if OS guy called out the interns and mobilized them to support this campaign. Pole Poll Made me smile but this too seems like an artifact from a previous campaign, diluting the experience for me. Photos User generated content complete with buxom blonde (is no place safe….jeez). It would have played better if we were guided with what upload and rewarded with video message. Videos Behind the scenes and user generated videos complete w/ spammers. Again, it would be great to see focus on what is being uploaded. Polls Witty questions – 20,683 people voted!!	AXE W.A.D.D Facebook app that allows you to report “boring” friends because they suffer from “Women’s Attention Deficit Disorder”. To date 11,777 “WADDS” tagged. This is on-brand as the least-common-denominator humor that would attrac their target audience. Axe Rise Test Link to their microsite where you answer questions on a web cam that that records me without my permission, asks me inocuous questions that are recorded only to be used to be edited into a canned video with sexual innueandos. Ha ha got me. WHERE IS MY DELETE BUTTON!??? I don’t want this on the internet. I’m calling my atty to see if he can find the delete button. #EPICFAIL AXD Indie Run Info on their promotion encouraging to donate clothes on the spot then run in their underwear. Seems fun and charitable. Will it move product? AXE Hair Action Oh, boy….what can I say….surround sound experience of sexy girl running their fingers through your imaginary hair breaking into an imaginary catfightfighting over you with no video . I know I’m getting old, but do they think even horny college (or younger) kids think this is funny much less want to share this?! #fail JenniewithAXE Personalizing Axe through the employee of the PR firm. Um..Jennie seems sweet and all, but…what? See “Spokesperson” notes. Videos AXE produced videos and TV spots (love them!) and 5 fan generated videos. Polls 2 polls with a total of 20K responses!
Fans/Likes	595,056 People Like This	274,503 People Like This
Fan Engagement	Each wll post by OS guy garners hundreds, sometimes thousands of “like” and hundreds of replies.  Amazing level of engagement.	Jennie post interesting finds and does a good job of keeping a conversation going with a couple of cross-promotional posts, but most of the comments are fan driven quips and comments about the product and how much they LOVE it (a lot of 1-liners) or their experience at AXE events
Comment Highlights	Old Spice: Well friends, like all great things this too must end. (508 replies!) Alex Forian: No…NOOOOOO! It can’t be, not now! I haven’t growen tierd of you yet! Beth Crabtree Hunter: Most brilliant ad campaign that I have ever seen! Loved it! Santiago Cruz : Noooo, Don’t GO, so soon???? Think about it people…these are people saying, “please keep trying to sell me Old Spice!”  Amazing eh?	AXE : Amy K here, your AXE Hair Spokestylist! For Giveaway Wednesday on Twitter, I want to see ur favorite summer ‘do. Follow @AXE and tweet a pic for a chance to win an AXE hair gift basket! So, what’s your favorite summer style? –Amy K (22 Replies) Cory Lee Hill: i personaly use old spice and axe. but old spice has a more genuine smell axe is a spice for like kids who want pop unless your useing one of the amber axes or something. Nishant Vijay: no one like AXE in the market..
Sentiment	Obviously extremely positive sentiment that is tying back to purchase intent. Comments include: David Di Iorio: We must all go out and buy Old Spice…its the only way we can have a little bit of the Old Spice man with us everday. Vanessa White: Nope. no no no no no Why!!!!!!! why… I’ll miss you so much. I’m going to buy some Old Spice just to smell it and think of you always. Good-By my friend. you will always be the sexyest man of my life. Julie Turner Nelson: Ok Old Spice…Please dont take away the pretty talking ridiculously hunky guy I guess I will have to go out and buy my husband Old Spice… until now that was the smell of my father, now it has a whole new image	There’s a good deal of positive sentiment in the posts.  Mostly 1 line proclamations of their adoration for the brand.  This is good, be it would be great to start a conversation as Old Spice has done. Dylan Andrew: ughh u should smell my gym locker room these idiot kids spray it EVERYWHERE and it stinks! Reply Thread: Brett Goldsmith: same for my locker room Jennie Averbook (note: Jennie is the official social media person for Axe): Dylan, too much of any smell is no good! AXE knows all scents are best in moderation, and created the Double Pits to Chesty move to show just how much to spray http://bit.ly/97g0Yv
Launch Date	January 2006	June 2005
Gist	Packed with OS Guy’s video responses to comments from across the web as well TV spots	Uploaded AXE TV spots. Of course the spots are fantastically clever and witty. There are scenes from promotional events and even hidden camera show featuring Olivia Munn (call me <wink>).
Stats	Channel Views: 7,258,771 Total Upload Views: 72,505,746 Subscribers: 104,612 Channel comments: 16,901 #3 – Most Subscribed (All Time) – Sponsors #1 – Most Viewed (Today) #1 – Most Viewed (Today) – Sponsors #1 – Most Viewed (This Week) #1 – Most Viewed (This Week) – Sponsors #7 – Most Viewed (This Month) #1 – Most Viewed (This Month) – Sponsors #2 – Most Viewed (All Time) – Sponsors	Channel Views: 3,670,200 Total Upload Views: 4,274,193 Subscribers: 4,418 #91 – Most Subscribed (All Time) – Sponsors
Highest Rated Comments of Most Viewed	LittleBroExpress: Wow..This old man spics response videos are awesome! I cant stop laughing! arogorn811: Old Spice Guy if you and Chuck Norris had an arm wrestle who would win?	Bobinti: In UK “Axe” is called “LYNX”. The bottles and colours are the same cafe9803: all bodywashes & perfumes are chemically charged, how do you think the smell gets around! please think of others when applying these fragrances..keep ‘em to yourself!!
What the??!!	@Jsbeals: @OldSpice Can U Ask my girlfriend to marry me? Her name is Angela A. Hutt-Chamberlin #Johannes S. #Beals Reply (hint – she said yes!!!) Just think about it…a BRAND proposed to a guy’s girlfriend on YouTube via TWITTER!!	Smell my finger? Ah…<blush>…a girl asking a girl to smell her finger??! Contrast with a marriage proposal and you get the gist.
Followers	84,253 (3,307 at start of the campaign) Rank: #2,172	1,688 Rank: #71,645
KLOUT Score	96	25
Top Retweets	RT @OldSpice: Well friends, like all great things this too must end. Watch Video>> Possible Reach: 147,266 RT @OldSpice: hello twitterers, @twitter I haven’t had any luck taming whales. Watch Video >> Possible reach: 120,210	RT @AXE: Well @mrwright8413 both #undierun were amazing, the students were great. In terms of clothes collected, ASU is winning with 530 … Possible reach: 4,508 RT @likeaffabieber: Tapi lo tetep keren seeel hahhahha byk klii cewe yg ska ama lu RT @axe Possible Reach: 4,366
Sentiment and Passion	Positive Sentiment: 11:1 Passion:  28%	Positive Sentiment: 2:1 Passion:  17%
What the??!!	First ever Brand to Brand Twitter conversation (?) @Starbucks to @oldspice You look cold. Need some coffee? Reply to Tweet >> @Gillette to @oldspcie – shameless plug, but at least they adimitted it! Brilliant to engage celebrities such as @Alyssa_Milano who retweet and even responded with a charitable challenge to which Old Spice donated $100,000!!! Brilliant to engage influential bloggers and media outlets! Ashton Kutcher was the first @oldspice tweet I saw referencing @kevinrose. Of course both retweeted. Reach from those 3 tweets alone = 7,419,952 at a CPM of $0.00!!!!	Stream seems to be about promoting product events, or personal insights. This was particularly intriguing conversation: @codyks: @AXE I use Body wash/shampoo/Deodorant/ and a spray (@tamajama really digs the spray, Dark Temptaion) Reply Thread: @AXE: @codyks Yea? Have u tried the new AXE Twist? It changes over to keep girls interested! We’ll send u some. Just DM us w/ ur address! -JWA @codyks @axe engaged me very well on twitter & made an even more loyal customer of me. @AXE: Aw SHUX -JWA RT @codyks @axe engaged me very well on twitter & made an even more loyal customer of me. Customer engagement, swag, or bribe? What do you think? Did he follow before or after the offer?

DEEPER DIVE

Why Axe Bet on Consumers for Global Twist Launch

The Old Spice Social Media Campaign by the Numbers

AXE Ads BlogBehind the Work: Old Spice Responses

Axe vs. Old Spice: Whose Media Plan Came Up Smelling Best?

Behind the Work: Old Spice

NYT: Old Spice Argues That Real Men Smell Good

The Team Who Made Old Spice Smell Good Again Reveals What’s Behind Mustafa’s Towel

Behind the Curtain of Old Spice’s Viral Video Mega Hit

My wife and the new iPhone app Siri have a lot in common – they both have great personalities, they are brilliant AND gorgeous <insert brownie points here>.

I recently attended a meeting of the local IxDA (Interaction Design Association) where they showed videos from Interaction10, this year’s conference for interaction designers.  One video struck me as particularly poignent in my quest for the ultimate user experience.  It was a presentation by Cindy Chastain called Thinking Like a Storyteller.  Her challenge to the audience was to think about interaction design as a story that has a beginning, middle and an end and to create characters to drive that story.  The system feedback is a character that interacts with the user (also a character in the story).  This is the beauty of Siri – “she” has a personality that makes me feel happy.

The iPhone personal assistant app Siri is telling a story like no other on the iPhone.  I’ve never experienced a more relevant app that throws away the paradigm of what we expect from the iPhone UI to create the worlds greatest user experience.

From the ease of use – click a button, say what you want and poof you have results; to the super-friendly feedback – “ok, got it. Just a second while I find that for you”.  Siri has really managed to create not just a character, but a personality that is driving the story line.  Powered by Nuance’s famed speech recognition, it’s accuracy is pretty amazing.  But even that becomes commonplace after a few iterations.  THE REAL amazing thing is how brilliant the application is.

Famed sage Robert Scoble recently wrote about it calling it “The Future of the Web”.  What makes it so amazing is the integration points of web services.  It doesn’t just take me to Opentable to make a reservation, it allows me to make the reservation from within the application.  Want to find a PG-13 movie playing near you? NO PROBLEM!  Just say “PG-13 movies near me” .  Wanna tweet? Sure, say the tweet command and faster than you can say OAuth – poof – you’ve tweeted.

It’s the perfect amalgamation of elegant design, technical genius, unsurpassed user experience, utilitarian perfection and anthropomorphization of the iPhone.