Oh Wiki your so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind…or do you?

There are many pro’s and con’s to Wikipedia. The question that I have been pondering: does it make since for small business to develop a Wiki page? In broad perspective the concept seems to be a winner. Wiki has become a quality tool for search marketing and a place people turn to in order to start research on a subject.

Try it for yourself, do a Google search and see that a Wikipedia page comes up as a top result. Appearing in more search results alone, to me, is worth developing a Wikipedia site. Having consumers find information about your business on more that just your own website tends to be a positive attribute. You can define what your business is, what it is about, and the history. However, developing and publishing a Wikipedia site for your business might not be as easy as it seems.

First you need have constant daily monitoring of the page. Keep in mind that once you develop a page, you cannot “set it and forget it.” Its not that simple, as anyone at anytime can edit the page (which is the entire point of Wikipedia’s “online community of people interested in building a high-quality encyclopedia in a spirit of mutual respect”). Anyone at any time can change the content or add submissions that are false, tag stories or pictures to your site. So do not forget and monitor your site, DAILY!!

Remember that Wikipedia says it is not numerous things including: a dictionary, a paper encyclopedia, a blog, webspace provider, social networking, a crystal ball. Let me add a place to make a sales pitch. Wikipedia also has rules of notability guidelines in order to be published and make it passed its administrators.

Matt McGee wrote a blog “Should Small Business have a Wikipedia article?” In short he is against it because it is too much of a headache. But is the headache worth it? You decide!

This is my experience in the last two weeks while I moved:

• Three months ago I need a storage unit for short term until I had plans finalized. I researched, received
quotes, and booked online without talking to one person until I showed up at the actual unit.
• I was able to research reviews for moving companies and requested quotes online from one website for ten
moving companies without ever talking to one person until I had narrowed the selection down to my top
three. In fact, the top three were all recommend by friends off Facebook.
• I connected my cable, electric, and changed my cell phone plan all online. Each company sent me some sort
of automatic email or text response confirming service.
• I researched and ordered a fridge online and had it delivered. Ok, I did talk to the delivery guys the day of
delivery before they showed up at my door.
• I bought a new vacuum after sending out a recommendation request via Facebook to my friends.
• While waiting for my fridge to be delivered I order pizza and pop (aka soda or coke) online, and had it
delivered.

Come to think about it, the only thing that required actual verbal communication was leasing my condo. However, the majority of the details were worked out via email, text, and fax with my Realtor.

Certainly technology has made life easier, but too easy? Is zero face to face and verbal communication a really good thing?

Black culture travel social site…will it fly or crash?

American Airlines is launching a new social networking site for travel around the world that focuses on the black culture. The site is BlackAtlas.com and is to fully launch this month. Users of this site must register in order to utilize it. Users can upload their own travel reviews of their favorite explorations as well as add pictures and videos to their posting. The social site is hosted by George Neilson and is supported with a Facebook page.

“We at American Airlines see Black Atlas as an important connector, enabling an online community of travelers to share information about their favorite places for experiencing African-American and Black culture, food, music, literature, history and events across the globe,” said Roger Frizzell, American’s Vice President – Corporate Communications and Advertising.”

I commend American Airlines for recognizing the potential of the African American market and finding a way to highlight the black culture worldwide into the travel industry that American Airlines naturally caters to. The potential of this unique site is endless. With George Neilson leading the way, and individuals from all over having the opportunity to share their special finds, it will be fascinating to see the places around the world that are uncovered.

It will be interesting to monitor this site to see how long it takes (pardon the pun) to get off the ground and flying. It seems to have the foundation for success, but how will American Airlines promote the site? Will American Airlines offer special travel packages to places around the globe that are highlighted by George Neilson? Only time will tell, in the meantime, my seat belt is fasten and I’ll enjoy the flight.

Emerging media…here today gone tomorrow?

Are you using any type of emerging media in your business marketing plans? If no, why not? MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Wiki, blogs all could be fads or they could last forever. Only time will tell. Currently, each of these social networks offer unique was to communicate and engage with your consumers. The question is, as a business, should you be using them now, if so, which one?

The answer is simple. YES! Even if they are a fad, who is to say how long each will last, and maybe one or two are here to stay. So why not pull up your birches, jump in and give it a try. After all, they are free, easy to change ad update, and some young intern in your office will be thrilled to get your company off the ground. So what are you waiting for?

You want to try but which one should you do? There isn’t one clear-cut answer, but you need to be where your customers are, and my bet is your consumers are in numerous places. So therefore, you should do the same. Because these mediums are free, and because know one knows which one will prevail or which one will phase out, it is best to keep a diverse social marketing portfolio and integrate all your current marketing efforts to be fluid. That way if one of the mediums fade, you are still going strong with the others and do not have to start over at ground zero to build another network.

Mistakes will be made and are to be expected while you learn this new form of marketing, but don’t freight – learn from them and keep moving forward. Before you dive in, develop a game plan, brand your online community to mimic and compliment current branding efforts, set realistic expectations, assign responsibility to one person (or a couple people) to maintain the sites on a daily basis. If done correctly, these social networks could open avenues of communication with your current and potential consumers.

What social networking mediums are you using? How are you utilizing them?

ADVERTISEMENT OR GAME?

What do you get when you combine a commercial with a game? You get advergaming! Advergaming is the practice of using video games to advertise a product, organization or viewpoint. It can be played on the internet or even on your mobile phone. There are advergames for all ages, with some advertisement are subtle while others are more direct. The gaming industry is very large and it continues to grow, but does incorporating brands within the game work?

It comes down to interaction. Instead of consumers watching a :30 second commercial, advergaming allows consumers to interact with a brand for an extended period of time. The engaging nature of advergaming holds the attentions of consumers longer, allowing e-tailers to educate them about new products or product features.
Further, advergaming lines up with social networking when one consumer emails the game or link to friends and they forward to their friends, this aids in extending the advertising reach.

In January, 2009 ComScore released a study which showed that “the category has grown 27 percent during the past year to 86 million visitors in December 2008, while the total time spent playing online games has jumped 42 percent. Americans’ total share of Internet time spent playing online games grew from 3.7 percent in December 2007 to 4.9 percent in December 2008.”

ComScore

ComScore

Advergames are typically free but some sites do require consumers to create an account, and sometimes actually pay to play the games. In addition some advertisers just throw their logo on any game, games that do not have any correlation with the brand. If budgets allow, advertisers need to create custom games that integrate the brand into the game in a function that creates a natural association.

The facts are in, advergaming works. It is time to try this advertising medium, if you do, do it the right way and spend the money to create a game that makes since for your brand. Don’t be just another PacMan game with a logo thrown on it.

Posted in Advergaming, Gaming, Product Placement, Social Media, Uncategorized, Video Tagged: Advergaming, Gaming, New Media, Product Placement ]]>