And, of course, they shouldn’t. But it’s still nice to see a brand go out on a limb and test the waters with a too-hot-for-primetime web spot. Last month, Wrigley’s Orbit brand teamed up with DumbDumb, a production company led by Arrested Development alumni Will Arnett and Jason Bateman and backed by IAC (CollegeHumor, Vimeo, tons of others).

In the digital short (embedded below, NSFW), Arnett and Bateman revive their impeccable AD chemistry and are joined by Aubrey Plaza (Parks & Recreation, Funny People) and Rachel Harris (The Hangover, various shows and films about cougars). It definitely goes too far for most brands, which is part of the viral appeal.

The real story here is DumbDumb’s new initiative, and how they’re trying to create truly shareable digital shorts that communicate the brand message without feeling bogged down by it. Interviewed in the New York Times, Bateman compares what they’re doing to an improv show, where the audience throws out a random word, and the actors create a sketch out of it. In the case of branded content, they start with the tagline (this time, “A good clean feeling no matter what”) and ride it well into the sunset.

In the Times article, Bateman comes off a little more independent from branding than he probably is. He says they make funny entertainment and then “just arbitrarily make that subject matter a brand’s message.” DumbDumb admits Energy BBDO “provided creative insight into the campaign development,” and the resulting short is certainly more on-target than your average SNL digital short.

But the spot is still pretty compelling, and pushes brand comfort farther than most efforts out there. “Prom Date” is just the first in a series for Orbit, and it will be interesting to see where DumbDumb drags other excited, if hesitant, brands in the future.

It may seem like old news considering most of our friends and family spend more time online than watching TV but now there are official stats from Ipsos Reid to support this statement:

First time ever, Canadians are spending more time each week online than watching television.

The report finds that overall, Canadians are now spending more than 18 hours a week online, compared with 16.9 hours watching television.

Internet usage is up from 14.9 hours last year. The number of hours watching television also rose in the last year, from 15.8 hours in 2009. Usage of newspapers, radio and magazines have all remained relatively stable in the last year.

Some industry watchers have noted that the cost of watching TV is rising as cable TV companies and satellite operators raise the monthly cost of service. As that happens more people are watching TV online for free.

Later today, the CRTC is expected to rule on a so-called TV tax or fee for carriage, a cost cable companies have said could add another $10 a month to consumers’ bills if the regulator rules they have to pay broadcasters for their local signals.

In breaking down its survey, Ipsos Reid noted that males are spending significantly more time online than females–20 hours compared with 16.

In addition, 18-34 year olds are spending 20 hours a week online on average, compared with 18 hours for those over 35.

“In previous years we’ve seen significant differences between the generations and the amount of time they spend online,” said study author Mark Laver.

“The data indicates that not only are people of all ages spending more and more time online, but it also points to a shift in how online Canadians are consuming media and where they are spending their free time.

“Today, online Canadians are finding a myriad of entertainment options available to them within the walls of their homes. While some entertainment content has simply shifted from television to online, the Internet is also providing new content to Canadians.”

& don’t forget to tune in to the Vaughan Mills YouTube Channel to catch the latest episodes of Style Agents Season 2!

Here’s a list of not-to-dos:

1. Be fake

The social web isn’t meant to be the easy way to deceive people’s trust.
Example: Originally, companies like Walmart and Sony foolishly saw an easy opportunity in creating artificial relationships and tried to bluff their way into making consumers believe sites like Sony PSP or the Walmarting Across America blogs were written by the brand leaders themselves – when that wasn’t the case at all. However since then, both Sony and Walmart have learned from their early mistakes and now have social media sites that follow more honest (and effective) practices. If only they got it right the first time!

2. Fail to listen to your customers

Information must flow two ways. Social media and non traditional marketing succeed on customer interaction that personalizes the experiences. Listening is really the most important step in learning about social communities on the web. It’s important to monitor conversations on an ongoing basis about brands and analyzing what can be done differently. Luckily, there’s a great deal of social media monitoring tools to choose from.

3. Not understand formal & unwritten social rules

One of the few (only?) times it’s okay to be a stalker is in the participation with social communities, especially with commercial intentions in mind. You should try to know what you’re talking about in an effort to improve your brand’s online presence and encourage relationships. Not only do the web sites have their own Terms of Service guidelines, but the communities also have an unwritten code for behavior that can only be understood by observing and participating. Ignoring these guidelines will most likely result in alienation by the community.

4. Be pushy

One of the worst things a marketer can do is be overly pushy. I think we all speak from experience when we say these methods turn customers away from the brand. Being pushy in social media and expecting traditional marketing outcomes are common among companies that see social media as content distribution channels for existing marketing programs. (See Online Video For Newbies: Tip #3)  Straight forward sales pitches are frowned upon in social communities. A social (media) environment is meant for interaction amongst “friends” and likeminded individuals not sales message interruption sales messaging. Provide information in interactive ways facilitating choices that lead to sales, and you’ll get better results.

5. Approach social media channels as silos

Many companies make the prevalent mistake of approaching social media via individual web sites rather than as a collective execution.
Example: having one division do a blog, another Facebook page, and yet another a LinkedIn group does not create a consistent image. Not working together is inefficient and can create mixed messages for consumers that participate in more than one social media outlets for the brand.

6. Not know how to assess ROI

Let’s face it, marketers are concerned with the same bottom line – ROI. This is why it’s essential that a social media strategy includes a goal and ways of assessing business value by focusing on increased product awareness, sales or cost savings. Regardless of how value is determined, social media should be validated as a profitable marketing channel.

It’s no longer only about the “4 Ps” (product, promotion, price, placement) of the marketing mix. If anything, social media has helped us evolve past the initial mix into a more consumer friendly mix of “8 Cs” – Conversation, Connections, Community, Consumer, Control, Creative, Collaboration and Content.

Test your knowledge of online video marketing presented in a quiz by EyeView. Not to brag, but we got 5/5….

CLICK TO TAKE THE QUIZ

Hint:

The quiz reinforces popular online video assumptions with stats addressing launch triggers, call to action, auto play, landing pages and voice over accents. What’s important to take away from here is that results vary sometimes in drastic measures based on video presentations. It’s substantial for marketers to understand which video experiences drive the best performance for their specific target audience in order to bring the highest value to their videos.

Just last week Google introduced the phone Nexus One, primarily meant to compete against Apple’s iPhone which has dominated the U.S. smartphone market. It’s notable that both phones have introduced key mobile initiatives in their race placing an emphasis on mobile video.

So what does that do for our online video industry?

At a minimum this means the expansion of a video ready universe. The two companies’ considerable marketing spending will mean that more smartphones will be purchased and therefore the experience of watching mobile video will just keep getting better. For example, the Nexus One’s screen resolution (480×800) surpasses the iPhone’s (320×480), which only means Apple will need to up the ante even further with its next generation. The range of video applications is bound to increase with more players fighting it out in the field.

Moreover there is no oligopoly within the distributors in mobile video like there is with cable and satellite which means that there is more flexibility in how premium video can be distributed to smartphones. Mobile world used to be where everything had to be approved and carried by the wireless carrier. However, that’s quickly evolving to an open sphere where there are no gatekeepers for applications and services making it seem more like an online distribution than traditional video distribution.

Furthermore by having its own device and operating system, Google is optimizing the YouTube mobile experience. The Nexus One is an improved way to search, view and upload YouTube videos making YouTube an even more valuable partner in the mobile race.

It appears as though 2010 is once again confirming itself to be full of sizable opportunities for growth with a prediction that video is a going to continue to be an increasingly important part of the digital experience.

Not bad for the first month back, huh?

Happy Holidays from the team at VMG Cinematic!

The past year has been a roller coaster of excitement for us at VMG. This accelerating journey has contributed to our growth on many levels as we constantly experienced change for the better. We were fortunate enough to work on some amazing projects with even more amazing people. 2009 has been full of late nights, early mornings, and great times. 2010 landmarks a special occasion not only because it’s the beginning of a new year or even a new decade, but because it’s a breakthrough in ways more than one – for our quickly flourishing industry, our continuously growing client base, and for us. The past has been encouraging and the future looks promising. Thanks to everyone who was a part of VMG in ‘09, we can’t wait to see you all in the new year!

Cheers,

The VMG team.

The “diseases” were determined using survey data from Asking Canadians (Delvinia’s own research division).

Participants were asked to grade familiar complaints about websites, producing this top six list of diseases which include:

Ad-Theria
The over use of ads on websites because marketers feel so strongly about advertising products and services at the expense of the customer’s experience.

Mono-typosis
Not listening or responding to your customers and prohibiting conversation and a connection with a brand.

Widgetitis
The overuse of trendy tech gadgets.

Navigation Deficiency Virus
Confusing site navigation because there’s too much content.

Obsessive Content Disorder
Information clutter and inundation due to irrational fear of removing old content from a website.

Datapox
Asking for customer information in confusing ways making the site’s core purpose difficult and frustrating.

Although these problems appear to be part of a new medium development cycle, similar to how advertisers struggled with television in the 1950s; there are ways to prevent these common mistakes, “curing the diseases” with an easy formula. The 5 step formula as suggested by Mast includes understanding your customer, focusing on the customer experience, providing people with a voice, communicating and learning from the experience. In other words, it’s presenting your brand as approachable and customer oriented as possible in the digital world that makes your brand the “healthiest” and “disease free”.

Source: Marketing Magazine

Original Web Video Series = Success for Retail Shopping

-Marina

Full review of the study from Reel SEO:

http://www.reelseo.com/video-marketing-top-priority-2010/