Ms. Adverthinker

Back in January, we outlined predictions for the 2011 technology year that included an increase in mobile photo sharing. Half-way through the year, and we are seeing that prediction come true.

Instagram is now up to five million users and is adding about a million users a month.  According to a New York Times article this weekend, “Those who study the way people socialize online say cellphone photos are becoming an integral part of sharing and communicating.”

“Professor Sundar said people once tended to take photos on special occasions, like birthdays and vacations, then post a big batch on services like Picasa and Flickr and share a link with friends. But with the introduction of smartphones with improved cameras, coupled with the rise of services like Facebook and Twitter, people are more accustomed to constantly documenting moments and sharing throughout the day.”

And brands are starting to experiment and use the tools available to engage their customers with photography.

“Brands like Oscar de la Renta, Brisk Iced Tea, Kate Spade, Starbucks and Red Bull are also on the service. Cecilia Liu, digital marketing manager at Kate Spade, said the company added Instagram to its social media lineup this year. She said it was appealing because the company could mix in a little more personality and behind-the-scenes glimpses than it would on Facebook and Twitter.”

Starbucks was one of the first brands to sign on to Instagram.  Now, when you search the Starbucks tag on Instagram, over 10,000 photo hits come up.

“We’ve been using Instagram for a couple of months and think it’s a fun, different way to share photos of what’s going on behind the scenes,” says Product Manager Brad Nelson. “We’ve also found a lot of people already sharing Starbucks photos, so it’s been a joy to look through those.”

As people are using mobile photography and sharing to these sites to document their lives, what are they taking the most photos of? Food, of course.

And, to find all of this great photography online, last week, Twitter introduced a new version of its search that incorporates photos and videos.

Brands that are figuring out how to incorporate photography sharing into their engagement strategies are connecting with their consumers on a more intimate level.

These are my raw notes from this session.

Gary Vaynerchuk

Calls himself obnoxiously practical.

Who can create the real context with the end consumer? That is the person that will win. It is all about the end user and the customer. We all talk to ourselves. Do you really have a grasp for the problem you are trying to solve?

Winelibrary.com – have a customer who ordered $20,000 in wine over two months. They know him on Twitter and they know he likes Jay Cutler. Rather than sending him coupons or a free bottle of wine, we send him a signed Jay Cutler jersey and make an emotional connection.

People aren’t looking at the billboards. They are not even looking at the road. They are not listening to the radio, she is on the phone. Mom is going to be impacted at the point of sale, she is going to pull out her phone and look at and compare all the products on her mobile device.

We are about to humanize brands.

Marketers do all the talking. Think about the person that calls every day and talks and talks. Then think about the person that you call to talk to. Love them first.

Everyone in social media today acts like a 19 year old dude: they try to close too fast. You have to build a relationship and build context.

There is no such thing as a social media campaign. A social media campaign is a one night stand. You have to build the relationship.

Old Spice didn’t talk to anyone. All they did was push. No feel. Thinks Old Spice is what not to do.

Content calendars suck. It is like going to a cocktail party with a script.

Throwing up a Twitter logo and Facebook logo up at the end, it is like throwing a phone number logo on the screen. Ridiculous.

It is small town approach again. Interact one on one. Search.Twitter let’s us go into the conversation and its acceptable. You can join the conversation.

We are sharing more in our lives than ever before. We are sharing things that we would have never picked up the phone and called a buddy to say, but you are basically doing that now.

Social media is not a fad because it is human.

Out care your competition.

Effort is grossly underestimated. If don’t naturally care, try.

Retiring from Wine Library TV as of today. Starting a new show: on mobile Daily Grape. Makes content more useful.

An interesting video about the ways marketing has changed.

The Cadillac commercials featuring Kate Walsh have been our for a while, but they must have just increased their media buy, as I have started seeing them again.  I remember when I first saw the commercials: I talked with friends about my affinity for the commercials.  They made me want a Cadillac.  This was, of course, before I was in the market for a car.  And, by the time I was in the market, I had forgotten about Cadillac.

But, I digress.  The commercials are playing again, and again, I asked a friend: is it weird that I really like these commercials?  This sparked an interesting conversation about who Cadillac is really targeting.  I assume that it is single, successful females-without young children-who connect with the the Addison Montgomery character of Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice.  My friend agrees because this spot is so different from “safety, family, convenience” message that is typically targeted to women.  Women who are moms, of course.  Not all women are moms.  Nor do all women want to be moms.  So, the question arises: how many women are there who are single and can afford a $60,000ish car?  Is this a viable target for Cadillac?

[A note on the lesson I learned by being forced to think about this just a little past "I like this spot": Just because the commercial appeals to me, does not mean the brand is targeting me.  As advertisers, we sometimes have a hard time distinguishing our reactions from those of the consumers we target.]

As I continued to ponder this question, I remembered that women always want to see themselves as younger than they are (the opposite of children, who want to see themselves as older).  So, when targeting a 40-50 year old woman, brands feature a mid-30′s woman using the product.  Makes sense.  Luxury cars are really for that boomer audience, who can actually afford them.  But, Cadillac has a bit of a stodgy association, right?  I think of it as my grandfather’s car.  And, boomers don’t think of themselves as old.  In fact, they desperately try to avoid any association with it.  Perhaps Cadillac chose Kate Walsh-who is about to turn 41-as that person who will appeal to the boomer target and make the brand feel a bit younger.  She makes the brand “cool” again.

I wonder if this strategy will work for Cadillac?  I suspect it will take a couple of years to see the difference this “when you turn your car on, does it return the favor” positioning makes, but I think it will make a difference in the type of person you see driving a Cadillac in the future.

For your reference, here is one of the Kate Walsh spots:

This article in Brandweek hit home for me, being in the age group surveyed and having made some of these same decisions lately.  While we have been hearing for some time now that the economy is hurting, it seems as if the reaction has been a bit delayed by consumers this age.  The brand list below was startling to me, especially among a group that is as brand conscious as Gen X/Y’s.  Missing from this list is a technology brand and I wonder how long it will be before this groups stops buying new computers, cell phones, music players, etc. and what kind of increased impact that will have on the economy.

“Consumers 21-39 years old are feeling the economic pinch, according to a study conducted online by the Zandl Group on May 23.  Sixty-one percent of the 312 men and women surveyed said they have become more frugal of late.  Almost half (48%) said they frequent bars and clubs less, 39%  are driving less and 35% are eating out less…This has a severe impact on what brands they are choosing.  Here is a list of what companies and categories are keeping into favor and which are falling out of favor.

Popular

• Trader Joe’s
• Walgeens
• Craigslist.org
• Forever 21
• Target
• Paperbackswap.com
• Dollar Stores
• Fuel-efficient sedans

Unpopular:

• Whole Foods
• Starbucks
• Sephora
• Room & Board
• Nordstrom
• Netflix
• American Apparel
• SUVs

Check out a cool experiment by blogger Noah Brier: Brand Tags.  This experiment proves that consumers control brands – brands are what consumers say.  On this site you can tag brands yourself, or you can see what others are saying about brands.  Very cool and fun.  Enjoy.