Over the last few months, I have been privileged to work with a talented group of people on a new project for HBO Luck. Working together with the HBO Marketing team, Civic Entertainment Group and Live Stream, we created an application for Facebook that allowed people to become involved in the dark, seedy world of horseracing by practicing making bets on old races before accessing the real betting experience that would lead to a 6-race live Race Day event. An event that would not only be Facebook’s first live racing event, but only the second live sporting event aired over streaming video through their site.

Last night, Definition 6 hosted the PromaxBDA Emerging Media Workshop to talk about trends for 2012.  Presenters ConnectTV, Crimson Hexagon and Google+ talked about what the broadcast community needs to know as they plan for 2012, including how social TV will become more integral into programming, how data (especially social media data) will evolve and the importance for communication planning - right message, to the right audience, at the right time. 
What truly came out of the event (besides great networking and an excuse to eat pizza while drinking beer and wine) was that unified marketing is critical to the success of any brand.  Whether it's on-air content, social media or other owned media online properties, by leveraging the data we can now gather, unifiying your marketing message into the proper channels will exponentially amplify your message and increase awareness around your show, promotion, event or any other marketing objectives.

Google+ showed examples of this by using a simple story about a guy who had just visited Boston, and was asked "how was the trip?"  By Google's explanation, the answer is dependent on the person asking the question. If it was the guy's mother, his response would probably be drastically different than the answer he gives to his buddies, or even his co-workers.  This idea of the right message to the right audience and the right time, is exactly how we look at marketing and branding at Definition 6.  Our unified marketing approach is just that - leverages data to communicate brand messages appropriately to its core customers, in the proper environments and at the right time. 



Thanks again to PromaxBDA for hosting their event here at our offices!

After building a successful empire that turned the average cup of
coffee into a morning ritual for millions of loyal customers, Starbucks is attempting to extend their brand image from a morning stop to an evening hangout. Monday, the coffee giant announced they will begin offering beer and wine at four to six Atlanta-area locations, joining the ranks of a handful of stores in Seattle, Portland and soon-to-be Chicago.

Now that the year has begun, here are some 2012 predictions for advertising, media, and emerging trends:


 
Hi, Michael Kogon here, the CEO of Definition 6, and welcome to our 2012 video blog. I look forward to talking to you about unified marketing throughout the year, and I want to talk and start the year off with six predictions for 2012. 

1 - Year of Mobile – easy way to say it, but what I really mean by that is, how mobile influences the way we shop, the way we interface with retail, and the way we connect with one another.

2 - Second would be Social Networks.  Not just the mere fact that social networks are here to stay, and that Facebook consumes everybody’s time and life, if you are a meaningful brand you have a meaningful relationship with your consumers enabled by Facebook and others, but the notion that social connections are really informing the way brands and marketers have to work together.

3 – Third would be Video.  Just as we are producing video here, we’re seeing hundreds and millions of hours of videos produced, consumed and sent along all forms of devices and airwaves, as 3G turns into 4G, and we end up with very enabled users throughout the country and the planet, I think video is going to be the way we all choose to communicate and connect with our consumers.

4- The fourth way would be the movement of more money into Display Advertising.   I think Search is going to continue to be a big deal, obviously we’re going to see a lot of our digital dollars go there, but I think more and more of our money is going to be allocated towards display.  Again it’s a little bit of the video, it’s a lot of the social, but more importantly, it’s now brands have figured out how to use display to communicate a deeper, richer message that they can rarely do with direct response search. 

5- Fifth would be Turbulent Consumers.  I think consumers are going to shop on deal, I think deal sites are still a very good way to stimulate purchase trial.  But I think the other thing is that a lot of us are going to feel wealthy, a lot of us are going to feel less than wealthy, at any given moment within the year.  I think that kind of turbulence is going to really have an impact on what we have to do as marketers and time our message with behavior we observe our consumers exhibiting.

6- And the last is the Unknown.  The prediction of #6 is I’m not really sure what is going to happen in the sense that one thing is going to be an inflection point on the year.  Hopefully it’s a positive thing, but it could be a negative thing, like a natural disaster or market correction, but it could be a good thing like the Euro zone corrects itself, the Presidential election shapes up to where the country has optimism.  I’m looking forward to this year with you.  Please come back and see what our customers, our partners, and what the other people here at Definition 6 have to say.  Good luck in 2012. 

Definition 6’s Expert-in-Residence Frank Radice and Account Director Michael Sater attended the International Consumer Electronics show (CES) last week, and they are here to tell you about the insights and highlights from the event.

“So, this is Frank Radice down at CES 2012, where I worked on a panel with a bunch of great people from Bravo and Discovery and Yahoo! and Ovation, and we were talking about Social TV, and does Social TV have a legitimate place right now? Can it be intrusive? Is it a good thing?  I think the most important thing that came out of all of CES, for me, wasn’t a lesson that I hadn’t already learned, it was just something that I was reminded of, that you can’t make television for the other people that are in these rooms that are here at these conventions, you have to make it for the viewer, or the user, or the person that actually consumes the content.”

Frank: “So Michael, what have you seen here at CES that you liked?”

Michael: “Well, in CES 2012, Frank, what I found really interesting, was the immense number of mobile devices, tablets, phones, and I think it’s going to be very impactful for the social consumer.  Whether you are in front of a TV, or you want to grab content off of your television or off of the web, you can now have it traveling with you, which is very powerful.  So the consumer can feel more in command of that experience, so if they are watching something in their home, now all of a sudden they can draw up that content on their tablet.  In fact, TiVo is having a device where they can push the content from one TV to the next, and also to initial devices like their iPad. Companies such as Samsung are trying to bring that digital experience into everything, where now your washing machine will notify you when you are in another room in the house that your laundry is done.  For their primary customer, it’s extremely powerful, that they can now not be a slave to that machine, and they can feel informed at all points in time, with the information that’s relevant to them, when they want it, the way they want it, as they are walking around."

You can follow Definition 6 on Twitter @Definition6 or like us on Facebook at facebook.com/definition6.

All across the internet today websites are taking a stand against censorship. Resources such as Wikipedia, Google,  Reddit.com, and Craigslist are all blacking out  content in protest against the SOPA and PIPA  acts. Washington, DC has already begun to buckle this week towards the public outcry, but that hasn’t stopped a whole lot of people from making a voice for themselves today.

My first trip to CES in Las Vegas feels more like the sandstorm that overtook Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible: it came on suddenly and I left blinded, coated with bits and pieces of silicon.



I have only begun processing the whirlwind of flashing lights called CES and though fortunate to have an opportunity to immerse myself in the future of consumer technology, those 48 hours left me with just as many questions as answers.

When Univision asked Definition 6 to create the new song for their flagship Station KMEX-34, I called Randy Wachtler at 615 Music, Nashville. Randy and I have been nominated twice for the National Emmy Award for original music for TV, so 615 was a natural choice. Along with Aaron Grant and the 615 team, we got to work. 

Univision wanted a “Theme” to celebrate the Latino culture and Mexican heritage of Los Angeles.

So Rene Garza, Alejandro Valencia and I composed a wonderful piece of music based on KMEX’s branding concept, Aqui Contigo. We titled the song with that idea in mind and created a piece of music recorded with some of the best studio musicians in the country. Recently, Chava Garcia, the station’s marketing chief, created a work using the instrumental version of the song against the on air personalities in iconic locations in the City of Angels. In the near future, the entire 2:00 piece, with vocal, will air. Until then, here is a sneak peak at “Aqui Contigo.”

Yesterday I posted Part 1 of my Top Viral Video picks for 2011, which was a great trip down memory lane.  And here is today's list, for the Top 10 Branded Online Videos.  There are some excellent videos here like the Kia hamster dance and Coca-Cola's Happiness Truck, and I applaud the brands that made my list, as their creativity and bravery produced memorable, shareable content. 

So again, in no particular order, I present the best of the online video best:

Top 10 Branded Online Videos

• Zombies: The Ramifications of Yes (Toshiba)

   

Way to capitalize on the Zombie Apocalypse, Toshiba! Rancid milk can do terrible things to a person.

• Party Rock Anthem-Kia Soul Hamster Commercial (Kia)

There’s no way around it; this song is catchy and those hamsters are kinda cute.

• Imported from Detroit (Chrysler)

   

There is no better way to celebrate American work than the 8 Mile king himself.

• The Force (VW Passat)

If you didn’t want to be that kid, if even for a second, you are dead inside.

• Kenny Powers – K-Swiss CEO Video (K-Swiss) (NSFW)

This ad had people changing their business cards all over the office. MFAD, people!

• Angry Birds Live (T-Mobile)

A gaming sensation plus an actual catapult in the middle of Barcelona? Awesome.

• Go Beyond the Cover (Dermablend Pro)

Obviously, this is the best way to cover up that drunken tattoo you got after the company holiday party.

• Jennifer Aniston Sex Tape (Smartwater)

Even Brangelina was curious enough to watch this one.

• Immortalize Yourself (True Blood) - **disclosure - client of Definition 6

Whether you were a True Blood devotee or a Truebie, you totally squealed when Eric left you that message.

• Happiness Truck (Coca-Cola) - **disclosure - client of Definition 6

Getting a surfboard out of a delivery truck almost guarantees the best summer ever.

So folks - there you have it.  Awesome video work from our clients and others.  Looking forward to more hits in 2012!  Leave a comment below for your favorite either on this list or not!

It’s the time of year when everyone is starting to put out their own Top 10 lists. Best holiday gifts for that certain someone. Best appetizer to bring to your annual ornament exchange. Best way to answer the dreaded, “So why are you still single?” question from your crazy Aunt Melba. Best cover-up excuse for a hangover the morning after your company holiday party.

Considering I get paid to know what’s new and popular and awesome in the online world, it only makes sense that I present my list of favorite viral videos, both branded and not, for 2011.
And so, in no particular order, here is part one…(branded videos to be posted tomorrow so stay tuned!)

Top 10 Video Time-Wasters

• Rebecca Black’s Friday

        
This was so annoyingly catchy, that our own CTO started playing it at the beginning of Friday morning staff meetings. The ultimate earworm.

• Honey Badger

Honey Badger don’t care that it ended up on this list.

• The Homeless Man with the Golden Voice

The great thing was that he got a job out of it!

• Webcam 101 for Seniors

Yes, old people are so cute when they don’t understand technology.

• My Drunk Kitchen – Tacos

(A personal favorite.) Not just a single video, but a whole series. Who doesn’t love watching a drunk person attempt to cook and make a video at the same time?

• Girl Falls into Mall Fountain While Texting

A Public Service Announcement for tweens, teens and everybody everywhere.

• OK Go sing “The Muppet Show Theme Song”

If you don’t love The Muppets, you don’t love America.

• NASCAR Prayer

“Boogity, boogity, boogity, Amen!”

• Coneing

The new planking. But with ice cream.

• Siri Argument (NSFW)

“Oh dear.”

So there you have it.  Let us know which ones would be on your top 10!  And stayed tuned for Part 2: Top 10 Branded Online Videos that we'll post tomorrow. 























 

It's pretty cool when you get to work on a project that you know is a hit, a project that you know the client will love, and a project you know will get their fans talking.  And sharing.  But then you look at your glass and think, "Wow, this Kool-Aid is really great!" and sometimes you forget about what the people out there really think about your work.

And then your project gets listed on AdAge's Top 10 Social Media Campaigns from 2011, and you remember - yea that really WAS awesome.  And if your project was anything like our Facebook application "Immortalize Yourself" created to launch season four of HBO's hit show True Blood, then your conversations had something to do with any or all of the following: "vampires, witches, werewolves, Alan Ball, Anna Paquin, Alexander Skarsgard, Ryan Kwanten, Kristin Bauer, Deborah Ann Woll, HBO, Social Media, Facebook, complex Flash layering, detailed motion design, great creative, great script, personalization in full motion video, high availability, cloud farms, CDN's, open source, high performance where every millisecond in processing counts, and integration with multiple SaaS providers and their API's" (quoted from our CTO Paul Hernacki).



Thanks to all those folks at HBO and Definition 6 who worked on this project. And a special thanks goes to the fans - who shared this and have Immortalized Themselves and friends in countless videos over the course of this campaign.  In the end, it's all about creating content that is shareable, likeable and "tweetable." We are glad this one did.

Since season four of True Blood is over, we have moved the application from HBO's page to the Definition 6 Facebook page.  If you have not already IMMORTALIZED YOURSELF, go there today and make your video.  Share with friends.  And live on into eternity. 

Check out this video that shows some of the Definition 6 team integrated into the "IMMORTALIZE YOURSELF" Facebook Application.

The next time you hear someone playing Angry Birds or checking-in using Greensquare from inside a bathroom stall, make a mental note with yourself to never borrow their phone. In fact, you might want to start avoiding all other phones from now on.

According to this infographic by Keeping It Kleen, 16% of all smartphones have poop on them. Yuck! And unfortunately it's not just phones that you have to worry about. All tech gadgets from keyboards and iPads to TV remote controls are covered with germs. It's enough to make Howie Mandel take another shower (he's an admitted germaphobe who showers 5 times or more a day).

Take a guess. What is dirtier: Your keyboard or a toilet seat? Toilet seat? WRONG. The average keyboard is 5x dirtier and has 60x more germs than your average toilet seat. Say hello to your new office mate. Her name is Bacteria. And the next time you stay in a hotel and want to worry about the bedspread, wake up and smell the poop. The TV remote is the dirtiest object in the room!!

If you want to make sure your phone isn't part of the 16% that's covered in poop molecules, then try to break out some Purell or rubbing alcohol on a regular basis and give it a good cleaning. And the next time you see a coworker or family member walk out of a bathroom with an iPad, make sure it wasn't yours.

On Sunday November 13, 2011 Green Week began and to help support the Green is Universal mission to raise Green awareness and effect positive change to the environment, my company built a new mobile application for iOS and Android devices, Green Square.


My team at Definition 6 was tasked to create the application that would integrate foursquare technology with a “Green” twist.

The Green Square app gives users the ability to easily spot “Green Scenes” nearby and learn site-specific "green" information about the location, or view eco-friendly tips from NBCUniversal talent.  From a user (and foursquare addict) point of view, I love the fact that I can easily see how Green my existing network of friends is, check-in to any foursquare location, and earn custom Green Badges. 

If you are a “Greenie” or an eco-savvy person you can also nominate locations to be deemed Green Scenes by the NBCU team from the app.  Of course, for my fellow foursquare addicts, you continue to earn points on your leaderboard and can keep or claim your mayorships by checking-in from Green Square.

By harnessing the power of the mobile, social, and location-based ecosystem, we were able to develop this app as a way for NBCUniversal to build a stronger, more personal connection with its audience during Green Week.

It was a great project to work on with my team at Definition 6, and the NBCUniversal team, and I’m thrilled with the way the app turned out.  In fact, I look forward to new features and functionality that may be added in future releases, taking into account the feedback and reviews we are gathering this week as more and more users download Green Square.

Take a look for yourself, download the app today for free, and see what’s “Green” near you! http://greensquare.greenisuniversal.com

In fact, social media provides such immediacy that the water cooler conversations have gone away and are taking place at the virtual "lounge" (aka Twitter, Facebook, other preferred social media platform).

In a recent Jack Myers blog I elaborate on this further, but it definitely has spurred some controversy among my networks. 

When I posted the water cooler idea on my personal social media "stations" there were, of course, some contrarians.  One said "You're still thirsty after using social media." (funny) But another was even more specific, saying, "I think the whole social media thing is over blown. There was no social media during Tiananmen Square. The Soviet Union fell without Twitter and Facebook. When freedom rings, the masses answer."

True enough....but...

The world saw all that on TV not in the square or at the Wall.  And everyone talked about it the next day.  Not much changed in China, and the Wall didn't come down because of an outpouring of global social action through moral outrage and word of mouth...it came down because it was time, and Ronald Reagan said so!

Social media is now our most effective "word of mouth tool."

So let me ask you - do you agree with this water cooler analogy? 

Has this ever happened to you?  The woman next to you in line at the grocery store -- the one with the full cart standing next to an empty conveyor belt, holds everybody up while she chuckles at her iPhone.  Or the guy in the sedan in front of you who missed the light turning green because he is reading responses to a post he made in a gardening forum -- and will check 19 more times today. 

But let's face it -- it's not him. And it isn't her, either. It is you. And it is me. It's cliché to say we are a distracted people. It is cheap to complain about how our digital lives can lay waste to our personal ones. And it is a sine dicendo to say that when we can't get what we want, when we want it, at the price we want, and where we want it, we are prone to hysterics.

I elaborate more on this in a recent Mediapost article "Why Your Friendly Neighborhood Mobile Technologist Needs a Swift Kick in the Ass."

With the proliferation of tablets, smartphones and other connected devices, we are acccessing content more than ever on the go. So why aren't there more innovative mobile apps or mobile sites that "wow" us? Haven't we come so far that we can at least deliver something that won't make us leave the second we get there because of a fail to load or clunky navigation?

This is not a rant - but simply a call out to mobile technologists and developers to get excited. Get innovative. And to deliver something spectacular.

As holiday decorations in stores change and the first snowfall passes, I can’t help but think about the busiest retail season of the year that is right around the corner.  As an email marketer, this means increased frequency, and a higher tolerance to frequency from your subscribers, as well as promotions kicking into high gear.  However, as an email recipient, the next few months represent the most clutter I get from brands all year long!

I’ve put together my top 6 tips to hold your holiday (and all campaigns in general) together as you finalize your messaging and creative and start sending messages.

1. Reinforce that you know me and get personal. – Use the profile information you gather and personalize your messages to me.  Include my name, information about store hours or shipping windows based on my location, reference prior purchases and cross-sell relevant items to complement what I already own.

2. Understand my buying patterns and deliver timely and relevant messages that match up to them. – If you analyze your data and apply some common sense and a little marketing savvy then it will be easy to segment your subscribers and understand where each group is in the bigger picture.  Let’s simplify this: I bought a warm winter coat within the last year (that should last longer than that.)  This tells you that I need warmth but probably won’t want the same kind of coat.  How do you then sell me winter wear when you have great deals? Market a coat in a different category to me (dress, sport, or something I don’t own), Market other winter items to me – gloves, pants, shoes, etc. if they’re part of your offering.  ** The big key here is don’t tell me that the item I bought last year is now cheaper or technology is significantly lagging because you’ll just frustrate me!

3. Give me something exclusive for being a subscriber: value, content, discounts, etc. – Be unique and tie the exclusive content in your email to the action you want me to take (see below.) Don’t have a 20% off coupon in print, social media, email, and on my website.  If I don’t get anything special why would I remain a subscriber when there are much more passive ways I can get the same deal.

4. Make me want to open your email and load images with interesting visual design that renders well on my client. – Understand if I’m more likely to read my email on my smart phone, tablet, or computer and design so it looks the absolute best there and be different. Imagine what kind of success you could have if your email was personal, focused, and not cluttered!

5. Share similar peoples comments and feedback that are like me (because I trust them more than you)  – Pull in feedback on related items from other channels (social, reviews) into your creative.  This is a great way to let your customers be your voice and also grow following and participation in other channels.  It also makes the copy more interesting if it’s from a “regular” person.

6. Inspire me to take action and reward me for it! – Use a clear call to action (never more than two though, especially this time of year), make it easy for me to convert, pre-fill my information, and reinforce the fact that you know how I got into your conversion funnel and reward me as I move through the steps (hopefully 3-4 max).

You may think that it’s too late to implement these steps into your holiday campaigns but as with everything there are varying levels of implementation so start somewhere and pull out a test segment. Let performance guide you to continual optimization and really solid insights move your campaigns into 2012 as you are planning that email marketing strategy and calendar.

Since the day I interviewed here at Definition 6, I've heard about the annual Halloween party.  It was legendary.  By the time January 2011 rolled around there were still decorations on the walls, in people's offices and it was all they were still talking about.  So you can imagine the build up leading into this year's event. 

With a Vampire theme in mind, our fearless creative team created the "House of Blood," and transformed our NYC Office into a Vampire museum of sorts, equipped with three bars, smoking cauldrons with specialty punch, amazing sponsors like Yahoo!, StumbleUpon, Avid and Bootlegger Vodka, and some pretty awesome costumes! 

All the photos are available on our Facebook page.  We have multiple albums to view the pictures, including the photo booth shots.  Here are some quick links to help you navigate through the albums:

Album one - mostly step and repeat photos
Album two - party shots and some great costumes
Album three - more party shots...things are starting to get messy
Album four - dancing, dancing, Oscar the Grouch, and more dancing
Album five - happy party people and lots of smiles
Album six - part one of the photo booth pics (there are many!)
Album seven - more photo booth pics
Album eight - even more photo booth pictures
Album nine - the last of the photo booth pictures!
Album ten - the Atlanta version!!

The graphics department became the Fang Club Lounge offering an escape from the dance floor in a relaxing room with the Feeding Bar serving Fangtasy Elixir punch. 



Yahoo!'s Blood Lab bar offered a Purple Plasma Punch, and Blackout Shooters, with purple light up ice cubes in Yahoo! barware.  My favorite giveways were the Yahoo! insta-yodles with five settings on which to play the iconic Yahoo! Yodle.  




StumbleUpon's Vampire Slayer bar offered more swag items like sunglasses and koozies, and the photobooth provided fun for all (especially those D6-ers who showed up to work on the day after the party and got to see the photostream on our lobby monitors!).



The weather was challenging to say the least, with terrible rain and wind, and even with a tent and a tarp we had to move the party indoors this year for safety reasons.  But that didn't stop our clients, friends and other guests from showing up and dancing the night away. 




And to those who have not yet attended, there is always next year!!

In the marketing world we used to always talk about the importance of consistency in message and actions when it comes to building your brand.  This is still largely true but more recently, the marketing world has been obsessed with other "c-words" such as "context" and "content."  At the end of the day, however, the most important rule of all is simply that you're interesting.  And this morning, there is nothing more interesting to me than 8 year-olds in the UK covering "Enter Sandman."


Which brands do you think do the most interesting, and therefore memorable work?

The most fascinating part of the past few weeks for me was the realization that with my 36th birthday came the notion that I could have been born and graduated from high school all over again since graduating from high school.