The Crossmedia Grill http://xmediagrill.posterous.com More Vocal In The Monitor, Please. posterous.com Tue, 17 Apr 2012 19:10:00 -0700 The Slow Death Of QR Codes http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/the-slow-death-of-qr-codes http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/the-slow-death-of-qr-codes
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Who loves the QR code? Apparently not many. Already, QR codes have stoked the fire of a number of QR haters, just check WTFqrcodes for proof. What's troubling is that QR codes are not bad, they've just been badly used, by marketer who slap them (sometimes unable to be read) on anything and everything. Another problem, when used correctly, they take you to the basic (and non-mobile) website of the company promoting the code.

To really harness the power of the QR code, you need to understand that your scanner is mobile, which immediately means that time is limited and browsing is different. So if your QR code on your subway platform ad quickly downloads info, or is tied to some type of entry, contest, email submission, it's going to get more widely used than if it just site dumps. Oh, and with the subway platform ad, make sure it's the above ground placement.

QR codes work, they help reduce the friction when it comes to consumers getting more info, but it has to prove it's worth from an entertainment or utility standpoint, and provide something beyond the website. Just having a QR code doesn't make you tech-savvy, but using one correctly based on your audience's media habits will.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:40:00 -0700 So What Do You Guys Do? http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/so-what-do-you-guys-do http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/so-what-do-you-guys-do

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There's a line between the brand and the consumer. We're resonsible for that line. Sometimes it has a CPM attached to it, sometimes it's a human being. We make it hard occasionally for clients because we don't stay in that traditional media planning and buying box, but everytime we step outside it, we strive to deliver a connection. So if we're in a meeting and someone asks if we actually "buy media", we tend to take it as a compliment.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Mon, 12 Mar 2012 07:07:27 -0700 Entering The Conversation http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/entering-the-conversation http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/entering-the-conversation
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There's a conversation that's happening around us, about us and involving us, every second of every day. Our job as media people is to find ways to get our message inserted into that conversation in a culturally relevant manner, and in the same tone and lexicon as the people having it.

When we talk about entering the conversation, it's less about a banner ad, or a print insertion, it's more about becoming media chameleons, and finding ways to just exist without interruption. Sometimes it's becoming part of the culture, sometimes it's about providing the tools to help facilitate the conversation. Case in point: We're planning on sampling one of our brands heavily around the launch of the new iPad at the actual stores. We can't force a conversation to evolve after that, but we can stoke the embers, and if the people waiting in line start talking about the brand, awesome, it can just grow from there.

This is a conversation we think we can find ourselves in the middle of, but we have to actually go out and physically start it. Sometimes we can fall into thinking that all conversations can be started behind a computer, they can, but sometimes you need to get your hands dirty and start them the old fashioned way, in person.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:58:41 -0800 It's All About The IAB. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/its-all-about-the-iab http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/its-all-about-the-iab
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We recently read a media agency blog post about the "rise of Android tablets" and how marketers should "take note of the new offerings" that incorporate the Android operating system, as well as the new Kindle Fire and Google's far-off offering. The post ended by claiming that marketers need to think about if they should be developing creative for these "new" offerings. 

This just makes us wince.

Clearly, anyone who has been utilizing Android AND iOS platforms knows that the unit sizes are standard for the most part (see IAB specs above).

What's frustrating is that people are talking about tablets as if they are just another place to put banners. What we've come to realize is that it's not the specs that are important, but how people USE devices that is. For example, we recently ran a campaign across all online media on all platforms. We found that the way people interacted with our ads on tablets varied WILDLY from how they interacted with their mobile devices such as phones and iPod Touch, and even desktop browsing. There are differences, and it's the way consumers use these devices that's important, not what platform they are on. Someone running Ice Cream Sandwich on their phone isn't browsing differently from iOS on an iPhone, but it is different from ANY tablet. That's what's key here. You need to have an online objective in place first, and then the device will fall into place from that.

The next time someone talks about the "rise of tablets", ask them what that exactly means for a marketer who is looking to increase time on the site-side. Chances are they are just paraphrasing something they read in the trades.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:04:45 -0800 Our Social Media Planning: http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/our-social-media-planning http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/our-social-media-planning
Social
99% of the time we begin meetings with clients by asking if their product is donuts. If not, we have to make some slight adjustments.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 04 Jan 2012 05:50:04 -0800 My Offline App Store. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/my-offline-app-store http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/my-offline-app-store
Openspace

Colorado based Openspace may just be the first offline app store in the world. With more than a million apps available on their website, Openspace aims to help users avoid having to search for apps randomly, but rather focusing on their curated collections by friends, celebrities and by interest. By opening a bricks-and-mortar store, "app gurus" can help shoppers by offering suggestions and advice, and allowing them to interact with the apps right on the spot. Developers can even make personal appearances in store to help promote their new apps as well.

In this "all online" world, it's interesting to see how some people are bringing an offline twist to the experience. With app shopping, the offline approach could work very well, especially by allowing the "try before you buy" aspect to the experience. Who hasn't had the app-buyers remorse?

So we have to ask ourselves, what online experience can we bring into the offline world?

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:03:00 -0800 2011 Year In Review. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/2011-year-in-review http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/2011-year-in-review
Typewritten

A lot has been happening here at Crossmedia this year. We've won some business, lost some too. We launched our new website, got a new domain name (xmedia.com) and we welcomed some new Crossmedians big and small into the fold. We renovated our office, opened another and grew to a size we couldn't even fathom a year ago. All in all, a pretty awesome year.

We've also been plotting our world domination. Not in the Dr. Evil type of way, but a bit more subtle. We've been dipping our toes into the content world, the creative world and the merchandising world, and we're looking forward to unleashing our special brand of Crossmedia magic into each one in 2012.

Stay tuned. Big things coming.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:39:00 -0800 Print Is Dead. Long Live Print. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/print-is-dead-long-live-print http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/print-is-dead-long-live-print
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Just when we thought that print had vanished from face of the earth, it appears that it's trying to make a comeback in the form of a personalized mini-paper. A new device called Little Printer from Berg sits on your desk or counter and prints you a quick, mini version of the news whenever you'd like. The Little Printer is set-up via your mobile device, and you can customize it with news, puzzles, friend activity on Foursquare, etc. The unit holds an inkless thermal printer (remember old school faxes?) and you can get a customized printout anytime you press a button on the top of the unit.

Berg is currently planning on launching the service in 2012, and they're lining up publishers as we speak. I wonder how long until we see our first used car dealer ad? But, in all seriousness, if you're looking to reach a highly tech-savvy audience with the means to buy a mini printer (and other stuff), this might be the ticket.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 30 Nov 2011 06:56:00 -0800 Dude, There's A Band In Your Living room. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/dude-theres-a-band-in-your-living-room http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/dude-theres-a-band-in-your-living-room
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Actually, there could be. A new service from Belgium called Slowbizz aims to bring together music fans willing to host small musical events in their homes with talented artists willing to perform in such settings. Both artists and hosts must apply for membership on the site, but acceptance is not guaranteed, and Slowbizz says it takes its time deciding. Once accepted, however, both hosts and artists can join the network for free and begin making small concerts possible. Hosts pay 150 Euros to put on a concert, which they can get back in the form of admission fees for attendees; they also provide accommodation and a meal for the artist, as well as transportation to the artist’s next local gig. Artists, in turn, receive that 150 Euros fee as a guaranteed payment, in addition to any donations or purchases patrons may make at the event.

With the music industry struggling, we wonder if the next tour you go see will be in your Uncle Eddie's basement. 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:39:02 -0800 Who Has The Micropterus Salmoides? http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/who-has-the-micropterus-salmoides http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/who-has-the-micropterus-salmoides

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Hey, it's about to be Thanksgiving, and if for some bizarre reason you can't get everyone outside to play touch football (e.g. Perry, the one-eyed Collie mix isn't down with playing receiver) then you're going to find yourself inside, with the entire family, or someone else's. In these situations, it's always handy to have a brainteaser that will occupy everyone's time, and with that, we bring you the Crossmedia Thanksgiving family time-wasting brain teaser.  It is said that this quiz was made up by Albert Einstein and according to him 98% will not solve it. We're media people, and we have Excel and will probably make a pivot table solving this in about 7 minutes, but for everyone else, have a crack at it:

There is a row of five different color houses. Each house is occupied by a man of different nationality. Each man has a different pet, prefers a different drink, and smokes different brand of cigarettes. One of these men has a largemouth bass as a pet (bizarre, we know, but how many people do you know who smoke Dunhills?)

  1. The Brit lives in the Red house.
  2. The Swede keeps dogs as pets.
  3. The Dane drinks tea.
  4. The Green house is next to the White house, on the left.
  5. The owner of the Green house drinks coffee.
  6. The person who smokes Pall Mall rears birds.
  7. The owner of the Yellow house smokes Dunhill.
  8. The man living in the center house drinks milk.
  9. The Norwegian lives in the first house.
  10. The man who smokes Blends lives next to the one who keeps cats.
  11. The man who keeps horses lives next to the man who smokes Dunhill.
  12. The man who smokes Blue Master drinks beer.
  13. The German smokes Prince.
  14. The Norwegian lives next to the Blue house.
  15. The man who smokes Blends has a neighbour who drinks water.

Who has the largemouth bass as a pet?

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Fri, 18 Nov 2011 11:40:00 -0800 I Guess There Is A "Unlike" Button. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/i-guess-there-is-a-unlike-button http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/i-guess-there-is-a-unlike-button

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Monday Note had an interesting piece recently about the "subtle shift to Twitter". The article dealt primarily with the growing frustration of users with Facebook, and how they are migrating to Twitter for the things that Facebook is not, basically, it's simplicity. The article goes into detail about the rise of Twitter in a news perspective (e.g. Walt Mossberg at the Journal has 874 "likes" but he has well over 250,000 Twitter followers.) The other point the article makes is that the 140 characters is so mobile device friendly, it works perfectly with how we're consuming news and information on our mobile devices.

Facebook isn't going anywhere, probably for a while, but this shift to Twitter is an interesting one for marketers who might have been viewing the "like" as the sole metric of success.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:21:00 -0800 Immortalizing Your Tweets For Life. Or Until Something Cooler Comes Out. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/immortalizing-your-tweets-for-life-or-until-s http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/immortalizing-your-tweets-for-life-or-until-s

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Ether Press is now compiling all of your tweets into a perfect-bound book starting at $25. No word yet on how all of your links to pictures of cats will work in printed form.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Fri, 28 Oct 2011 16:04:55 -0700 The App Economy. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/the-app-economy http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/the-app-economy
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Everyone should have an app, period. Well, at least every brand should. The way that mobile is evolving, we're becoming trained to use apps for our information as opposed to mobile search. Want to know the weather, who won the Bears game or what time Footloose is playing? You're probably using an app to find out. Americans spend an average of 667 minutes a month in apps, that's over 11 hours. We're finding that apps help us compartmentalize information within mobile devices (and when we say mobile, yes, we're talking about tablets too, those are pretty mobile.)

So why should your brand have an app? It's all about "share of screen" in our opinion. The more people who have your app loaded on  their device, the greater chance of them interacting with your brand. Pretty simple, eh? Even if it's something that will be used infrequently, you're still capturing attention, just by being there in the pocket, and every time someone scrolls through their apps.

Mobile now has greater potential reach than even TV, so think of your app as a :30 spot in this world. Not everyone will see it, or use it, but you're still there, and the more people that download it, the greater the chances of you gaining mindshare, and engagement.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 26 Oct 2011 20:44:00 -0700 I Can See The Future…Right Now. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/i-can-see-the-futureright-now http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/i-can-see-the-futureright-now
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I'll be honest, reading media agency blogs is painful. Why? Because every time I read one, expecting to find some great new insight, or hear about some great new application of our trade, all I hear is a bunch of wasted time about how "tablets are gaining traction" or that they are "poised to become the new media consumption device." Really? No kidding, you're probably reading this on one right now. The reason why so many media agencies are writing about the mobile space is because they aren't DOING anything in it. We barely have time to write this post because we're managing campaigns across not only iOS and Android mobile devices, but tablets as well. We don't need to read about mobile advertising because right now because we're too busy doing it. We can tell you that iPhone users tend to have higher click-through rates than Android users across the same media channel. We pulled that stat today, but in looking around to see if our media brethren are seeing the same things, or writing about it, all we see is some broad-stroke predictions about how mobile is the "new frontier."

Guys, it's here. Stop writing about it. Do it. Make us look better.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Thu, 06 Oct 2011 20:23:00 -0700 Untitled http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/74421643 http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/74421643

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks Steve.

 

 

 

 

 

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 05 Oct 2011 08:56:58 -0700 Did Apple Just Put A Hurt On Google? http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/did-apple-just-put-a-hurt-on-google http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/did-apple-just-put-a-hurt-on-google
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Yesterday Apple unveiled Siri, the new personal assistant that comes standard in the oS5 operating system. Think of Siri as your assistant that you can dictate requests to, who recognizes what you want, and then serves up results based on searching through various apps and other sources that are NOT Google, like Wolfram Alpha (heard of them?)

While this isn't going to be a huge money-maker for Apple, it could put a hit on Google, who relies heavily on search advertising. By some estimates, Google and Microsoft count on over 25% of their searches on mobile being done by voice, so it's not out of the question that people would be comfortable doing mobile searches this way.

What's it good for? Well, it can serve up the nearest kabob restaurant, tell you what movies are playing at 3pm, and help you find a rental car, etc. So, it's not too big of a leap for us to imagine the ad possibilities that lie within this app. Since it's relying on sources other than Google for the info, it could turn the whole SEO industry scrambling to figure out how to optimize on Siri.

Now, like everything Apple rolls out, the consumer adoption will dictate if this becomes the new way to search, or if this is a cute add-on to an already robust oS, but we have a feeling that it might end up being the former.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Tue, 13 Sep 2011 08:12:00 -0700 We're Kind Of Into Facebook. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/were-kind-of-into-facebook http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/were-kind-of-into-facebook
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According to Nielsen, Americans spend more time on Facebook than any other website in the U.S. to the tune of about 53 billon minutes per month. Yes, that's billion with a "B". Now, before you freak out, this is across 150 million users, so doing some quick mathematics, it seems that you personally only need to spend 10 minutes per day on the site to keep the average up. Better get cracking. 

No word on how many minutes both users of MySpace spend.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:34:00 -0700 I'm Out. And Click This Ad While I'm Away. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/im-out-and-click-this-ad-while-im-away http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/im-out-and-click-this-ad-while-im-away
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I'm going to be out of the office over the next few days, and in the process of cobbling together a terribly written out-of-office message I came across the "Out Of Office Ad Network." (Don't ask how I find these things, it's a long and complicated story). Saatchi & Saatchi Stockholm came up with this ingenious idea of putting ads in your out-of-office message when their art director was away for paternity leave.

It's a pretty cool idea, especially if you are trying to reach my mom, the guys in my fantasy football league or a deposed Nigerian dictator looking to transfer money into my bank account. In all seriousness, it could have some cool applications, and if you're a popular enough, you might just be able to make some money.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Sat, 13 Aug 2011 06:16:09 -0700 You Could Use A Drink. http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/you-could-use-a-drink http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/you-could-use-a-drink
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While Coke is busy rolling out their new fountain dispensers that allow you to customize your drink a thousand different ways, Pepsi is taking the more social approach, and introducing their "Social Vending System, one where you can buy your friend a Pepsi across town, or across the world. Pretty cool idea, and one that we think could be applied to a thousand different businesses. We just bought all you guys a chalupa, enjoy.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia Wed, 03 Aug 2011 12:00:00 -0700 Video Without Caption 3. #xmclient http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/video-without-caption-3-xmclient http://xmediagrill.posterous.com/video-without-caption-3-xmclient

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1219127/X-MAN.JPG http://posterous.com/users/hesvx45LBxrsK Crossmedia Crossmedia Crossmedia