Digital Likeness

You Can’t Hurt Coke’s Feelings

Andrea Hill — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 04:02:44 +0000

As organizations increasingly turn to social media to engage with (or broadcast to) their audience, the etiquette for setting up a corporate account needs to be considered.

Frequently, an organization will set up a company-branded Twitter account, complete with a corporate logo as the avatar and devoid of any sense of personality. This seems “safer”, more like the sterile press releases they’re used to sending out. As well, by not tying it to an individual, there is less risk of that person moving on with all the brand equity and relationships they’ve established.

But here’s a secret, and the reason why you need to break away from what’s comfortable to be successful in social media.

You can’t hurt coke’s feelings. You also can’t get that grin of satisfaction when Coke turns to you for advice and tells you you’re a lifesaver. Despite what those big agencies will tell you, people can’t truly forge relationships with brands. So when I’m trimming my followers list because I can’t keep up, I may hesitate to unfollow @GibranX, who I met at a conference in November, but I wouldn’t worry about offending @CocaCola.

Beyond offering value, offer personality. It’s the real thing.

Nexus Gone

Andrea Hill — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:03:12 +0000

I had such high hopes for the Nexus One. The promised features were great, including the tight integration with google services.

Unfortunately, there were some serious flaws that prompted me to cancel my new T-Mobile service within the 14 day ‘buyer remorse window’ and send my new phone back to the Googleplex.

First and foremost, the Nexus One IS a phone. So when I can’t touch the screen during a call, let’s say to input information like on a touch-tone system, or even to hang up, there’s a serious user experience issue. I resorted to switching the phone into airplane mode just to lose the signal to hang up calls.

I didn’t come up with a solution for the second screen issue. Remember those first few pictures that showed up online of the new phone, where you really mostly just saw the reflection of the photographer? The phone is all but entirely unusable in bright sunlight. I live in Colorado: we have sun almost every day. To try to use this phone outdoors in the sun means squinting, angling the phone and trying to shield it from any light. It’s a mobile phone: I should be able to use it wherever I am.

Lastly, there were some general problems with the services. Many of the services tied directly into Google data, which is fine when Internet access is available. I got countless errors during my short term with the phone.

Anyone who has had an iPhone knows the joy of showing it to someone. Even the ease with which things scroll, the entire experience is special. I never felt that with the Nexus One. Even when I’d try to demo the features (I did love Google Maps Navigation), I didn’t always have faith that there would be anything to show.

So, I’m back on my iPhone 3G with AT&T. Thankfully, AT&T was fantastic when I came back, and didn’t make me sign a contract, so I will be ready to upgrade when the next version of the iPhone comes out!

Chipotle Haiku Contest

Andrea Hill — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:31:52 +0000

Win via Facebook
Chipotle burrito prize
Write, invite, vote-NOW!

Chipotle just announced an online contest: today only, post a haiku on their Facebook page, and the haiku with the most “likes” wins.

Chiptole commercials are always creative, and recently they’ve looked to crowdsourcing for content. This contest also takes the next step, encouraging hopeful winners to invite their friends to vote on their submissions. Obviously, you must ‘become a fan’ to vote, so Chipotle benefits from an increased fan base, at least during this voting.

View the contest ad here

How Facebook Could Make Pages Better for Administrators

Andrea Hill — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:33:45 +0000

Hey Mark,
How’s it going? I promised you another note when I wrote earlier about events, so here it is.

I wanted to share some ideas with you about Facebook pages. I know this has been a work in progress and I hope you’ll consider some of these suggestions.

Let administrators post as themselves – we all know social media is supposed to be about individuals engaging, right? So how come when I post on the page I administer, I cease to be a person and start to be my organization? It’s kinda creepy. This is particularly important when there is more than one admin, and any responses seem fragmented. Why not let the posts come from “Andrea (Org Admin)” rather than “Org”?
Let me know when people post to the pages I administer – I love the notification at the bottom of my screen when someone posts on my Wall, why not also let me know when someone posts on a Wall I’d administer? Yes, it could mean a lot of notifications, but it also means I’m better able to engage with my fans.
Let me share items to the page I administer Right now I can share to my profile, or send a message. Why not make it easier for me to share to the page I administer, spreading information more easily across the site?

Thanks guys, you’re doing a great job, keep it up!

Notifications: Nexus One 1, iPhone 3G 0

Andrea Hill — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 15:11:37 +0000

The Nexus One handles notifications beautifully: a status bar at the top of the screen shows icons related to activity, and a simple swipe of the fingers shows received emails, texts or tweets, missed calls, and other status items. You can click directly on any of the items to be pulled into that application, or clear the list.

This ability to run apps in the background and show the user a quick view of the status is great; no need to manually launch an app just to check a status. Although the iPhone has push notifications, the feature pales in comparison to the Android notifications, which often would flag an incoming email quicker than my Notify desktop app.

This quick view is particularly useful when checking the phone after a period of non-use, to get caught up on activities. It struck me that this is important for the Nexus One, because I don’t feel the same compulsion to be on it that I do with the iPhone. There is something simply enjoyable about using the iPhone, which is why you so often see folks simply playing with them. The Nexus One is much more utilitarian, in its use and feel. It’s a powerhouse, but I never felt the same draw to check it continuously. So the Nexus One needs to provide those notifications, to let you know what was going on while you were off doing something else.

Google Maps Navigation for the Nexus One

Andrea Hill — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 05:35:28 +0000

One of the main features that interested me in the Nexus One was turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation.

Almost all the features in the Nexus One have some level of voice support, and the navigation is no different. You can say things like “navigate to wagon wheel skate center” and it will guide you there. Obviously, it hooks into Google Maps, so there is no need to worry about purchasing updated maps for your car’s GPS. (You need only to be concerned with Internet access). It can also tap into traffic updates, letting you know if a particular route is congested, and suggest alternatives.

Yup: en route you can modify your path based on live traffic updates to determine which will be the quickest route.

For those who’ve been spoiled with a library of voices for their in-car GPS, the standard voice provided may be a bit disappointing. I also was quite surprised the system hadn’t learned that “Ft” on a highway sign should be pronounced “Fort” rather than “phht”. Overall, however, I was content enough with the service to claim that I really had little need for a different GPS device for my vehicle.

Google Maps Navigation is still in beta, but it is available for the latest Android phones.

Is the Comment Section for You or Your Commenters?

Andrea Hill — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:05:41 +0000

When I leave a comment on Ari Herzog’s blog, I tend to receive a reply within a matter of hours. Yesterday I left a comment on Micah Baldwin’s blog, and didn’t hear anything from him until this morning.

I don’t know; perhaps he was just busy yesterday. But suppose this is part of a strategy: you blog, then commenters get to have their say. Perhaps we may as a community decide to interpret things a certain way, apart from what the original writer intended. Then after some time, the blogger returns and responds. And a new round of conversation is stimulated.

I think it’s an interesting idea, giving the commenters some encouragement to express themselves without an immediate response from the original author. Micah can respond to a number of posts one after the other, which is likely more efficient for him, and it may bring back some people to the post now that there is a bit more overall discussion.

What to you think: this is a good approach?

Numbers Lie

Andrea Hill — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 13:54:47 +0000

According to MarketingCharts.com, as of November 2009 Facebook has 46% of the US market share of social networking site visits.

Does that mean you need to have a Facebook presence, because nearly half the people you want to reach are on there? Well, is your target audience all US social networking site visitors? (This is a trick question. The answer is NO).

Don’t get caught up in trends if they’re not relevant to your specific objectives and audience. Respect your new or potential constituents and refine your strategy to fit them, not the amorphous majority of all Internet users.

That’s why I like the Forrester Social Technographics Profile Tool. While it still makes some broad generalizations about Internet usage, at least there are some distinctions made. Obviously, direct surveying of your audience will help even more in ensuring your strategy fits with their needs and behaviors.

Why Should I Fan Your Brand?

Andrea Hill — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:29:22 +0000

The other day I ‘fanned’ Heartless Wheels on Facebook.

Heartless Wheels are a specific type of wheel used for roller derby; they are narrower and lighter than other types of quad wheels like Atom or Radar Wheels. Some of my fellow skaters use Heartless Wheels, but I don’t. So when I fanned them, one of my Facebook friends asked me why.

Yesterday, Heartless announced, via their Facebook page, a contest to win a free set of wheels. Now my friend understands.

For all extents and purposes, I’m not a brand advocate for Heartless. They don’t have a single cent of my hard-earned money. But that could change if handled correctly. Obviously, winning a contest is going to make me a true advocate for their brand.

Introducing me to their products in a non-pushy way can also get me there. Lululemon does a great job at featuring their products on their Facebook page. Got questions about a product? Ask it here and they will respond back. This is super for a brand where people may not be able to “try something on/out” before buying. Dedicated administrators can answer questions or encourage discussion, or eventually the passionate community can entertain itself.

Too often in social media, we concentrate on what we want to have happen (generate fans, comments, and ultimately sales) without considering what our target audience wants. How can we help them achieve their goals, and then how does that translate into our own? What will encourage them to fan us, and then to continue to be engaged, and eventually perform some action beyond hitting “become a fan”?

(Incidentally: an article on Inside Facebook outlines the policy regarding requiring individuals to become fans in order to enter contests on Facebook. Definitely worth a read if you’re planning on creating a contest on the page itself.)

Every Race is Different

Andrea Hill — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:34:30 +0000

I’m a marathoner: in 2009, I completed 7 marathons, ranging in finishing time from 3:29:36 to 6:42:15. Why the big discrepancy? Every race is different.

There are external factors: course and weather, as well as internal factors: training, nutrition, mindset. And all can have an huge impact on the end result.

When you look at a campaign out in the wild: either one you’ve done yourself, or something you’ve seen a competitor take on, don’t assume you can replicate the success. Certainly, you can learn what works and what doesn’t, but there are so many different factors, there are no guarantees.

Frankly, the excitement and challenge of the unknown is what keeps me in the race.

Courtesy John Noltensmeyer: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnnynotes/

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