Greg Verdino

Book 'em Verdino: announcing microMARKETING

I'm excited to announce that I've inked a deal with McGraw-Hill for the publication of my first business book, microMARKETING: A Breakthrough Approach to Building Brands by Thinking and Acting Small.

If the title alone isn't enough to clue you in, I'd like to give you an idea of the ground I'll cover in the book.  Here's a bit of how I described the book in the proposal itself:

A media revolution is underway, fueled by a micro-content phenomenon that is shifting the balance of power from mass communications to masses of communicators.  This shift plays out daily on blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Ustream and other social sites.  It’s in the notion that an otherwise normal individual can use social media and low-end technology to become a micro-celebrity with a significant following.  It’s in the viral effect that takes hold when even one online influencer (in essence a one-person media outlet) sparks a conversation that makes or breaks a brand.  It’s in the shift in behavior that is turning the smart phone into the “first screen” for Gen Y and many increasingly-mobile Gen Xers.  It’s in the shift from watching 60 minute television shows interrupted by 30-second advertisements, to watching 30-second pieces of online video content with no advertisements at all.  It’s even in the changing of our expectations of product design and retail sales, giving rise to dozens of successful small businesses and individuals (think Threadless, think Etsy, think Mimobot, think Lemonade) that can create and sell enough high quality, unique or custom merchandise at a premium to shoppers for whom choice and individuality matter more than convenience and price. 

These are exciting times, but they can also be scary times for marketers who have been trained to think that bigger is better, and for whom the excesses and successes of the past 50 or so years – big budgets for major media ad campaigns designed to sell mountains of product through big-box retailers – seem to be the only way to build a big brand.  For better or worse, the new reality is that the old way doesn’t work so well anymore. Simply put, micro-content and macro-marketing don’t mix – and trying to maintain the status quo while consumer behaviors and expectations change amounts to little more than a recipe for failure.

Enter micromarketing – a new approach to building brands, marketing products and services, and growing meaningful long-term customer (and corporate) value.  Micromarketing emphasizes relationships over reach, interactions over interruption, and the network effect over the broadcast network.  It is built upon the premise that the “next big thing” is really lots and lots of small things, and that to survive and thrive, even the biggest marketers must think and act small (make that “micro”), too. 

microMARKETING is not a "Twitter book."  Puh-leeze... In signature Verdino-style, I will aim to help marketers understand the larger trends that are driving the popularity of tools like Twitter and what the real world implications are for businesses (even if Twitter itself -- or Facebook or YouTube, for that matter -- goes away), but my focus will be aimed squarely at the big picture.  I also don't plan to trot out the same ol' tired social media case studies.  In fact, one key piece of my approach is to help large companies understand how to thrive in the era of micro-content and micro-culture by taking lessons from the people and organizations that are involved in the revolution at the grassroots level.  In other words, I'll be looking at what the biggest of big corporations should learn from "whatever experts." 

Again, from the proposal:

Over the past several years, social media has evolved from a trend to watch to an irrefutable fact of life for marketers of all sizes.  Now – before most companies have even gotten social media right – the mainstreaming of micro-content services, the ubiquity of powerful low-cost handheld technology (from Internet-ready phones to consumer-grade HD cameras) and the rise of DIY culture promise to change the rules of consumer engagement yet again.  It is important to understand how these changes impact our ability to build brands, manage customer relationships and drive sales today, and this will only become more important over the coming years as more and more consumers flock to the technologies that are powering the shift.

On the flipside, it is also important that marketers not get swept up in the hype surrounding a single tool or tactic, losing sight of the bigger implications for their businesses.  As has happened with core social media tools like blogging, podcasting and social networking (and short-lived fads like Second Life), marketers now run the risk of not seeing the forest for the trees – of jumping on the “Twitter bandwagon” with short-lived, ill-advised tactics that do little to impact their businesses.   

On the one hand, microMARKETING educates decision makers about larger trends and what they mean for companies who are looking to more effectively engage consumers through new digital channels.  On the other hand, it delivers tangible and practical case studies, stories, tips and tricks from familiar competitors (other large corporations) and unlikely sources of inspiration (micro-businesses and individual creators.)

microMARKETING is slated for a May/June 2010 release.  I need to hand in the final manuscript by mid-October.  Needless to say, I've got my work cut out for me over the next few months.

That may mean less blogging for the next few months, although I'll still try to post here at least once/week.  And you should stay tuned for periodic updates on the book, my progress and the process.  Hell, I may even ask you for some input along the way.

Finally, I'd like to thank the good folks at McGraw-Hill -- especially Donya Dickerson -- and my agent Ethan Friedman at LevelFive Media.

Good times, ahead...

GyPSii: all-in-one social networking for the iPhone

As 2008 came to a close, my blogger-buddy Peter Kim asked a batch of social media folks to think about what 2009 would have in store for our industry.  I included location awareness and mobile social networking among my predictions:

Geo-location, location, location. Location awareness will be the mobile utility of the year as more and more consumers use their GPS-enabled phones and mobile social software (mososo) to find great stuff to see, do and buy wherever they may be at any given time, and foster real world face-to-face connections with the people in their social networks.

A few months later, crayon began working with a mobile social network provider called GyPSii.  GyPSii allows people to use their mobile phones to instantly capture and share what they are actually doing, building a multi-media virtual diary on their world – the places they've been, the things they've done, the cool things they've seen -- and share their experiences with their network of friends.  It's an all-in-one mobile social application that lets you connect with friends, document your life and share experiences, all in real time.  And of course it seamlessly integrates with Facebook and Twitter - making it easy to update once and share everywhere.

GyPSii already has a nice global footprint, and it works on most carrier networks and on dozens of different handsets.  But the reason I'm blogging about them now is that -- as of today -- GyPSii has launched its iPhone App.  And crayon and our good buddies at SHIFT Communications are helping to spread the word and get some traction.

So if you're an iPhone or iPod Touch user -- and especially if you're a social media geek who has dabbled with mobile social software and likes to bang on new services -- it would be great to see you on GyPSii.  You can get started by downloading the free App from the iTunes right now.

If you'd like a guided tour of GyPSii's iPhone features, you can watch this short video demo:

[Feed and email readers, click through for the video.]

Once you've downloaded the App, be sure to friend me on GyPSii, follow them on Twitter and become a Facebook Fan.  But most of all, be sure to spread the word, because the more friends you have on GyPSii, the better it gets.

Looking forward to connecting.

Quigley, Havens & Verdino get social (podcast)

Yesterday, Jane Quigley and I spent some time chatting with John C. Havens about everything from mobile social software and charitable causes to SXSW coolness and Adam Broitman (it was mostly John talking about Broitman, but still...)  That conversation aired live on Blog Talk Radio, courtesy of PepsiCo, and you can listen to it on-demand whenever you have the time.

[I've removed the BTR embedded player because it auto-plays but the show is at your fingers with just one click.]

Kraft helps you feed your family & America too

In many ways, 2008 was the "Year of the App" with marketers focusing at least some of their energies on cracking the code for delivering value and engaging consumers through applications of the Facebook and iPhone variety.  And so it is fitting that Kraft Foods (disclosure: Kraft is a crayon client) is rounding out the year with a couple of solid efforts in App marketing.  Both are good examples of how big brands can leverage new platforms to deliver beyond-the-box value.

Check out what Kraft is serving up.

Kraft iFood Assistant

First up, we have iFood Assistant.  Kraft is the first consumer packaged goods company to launch a food App for the Apple iPhone, tapping into Americans' increasingly mobile lifestyles and adding value in ways that are consistent with Kraft's brand promise and business objectives.

iFood Assistant offers more than 7,000 recipes for everything from appetizers to desserts, from healthy options to holiday splurges.  Most are consumer-rated and reviewed, and a bunch feature helpful video demonstrations, all resident right on the phone.  (Most similar Apps simply call up Safari and point you to the mobile web.)  Of course, iFood Assistant isn't all form, no function.  Its best features include the ability to create shopping lists, organized by supermarket aisle, and even find the nearest grocery store.  The result?  An easy way to use your iPhone to get food ideas, plan meals and shop smarter.

While today's iFood Assistant presents recipe and meal ideas from the Kraft Kitchens, it was built as an agnostic platform and Kraft plans to incorporate recipes, ideas and products from partners to provide iPhone users with a solid, general purpose grocery/cooking App that offers lots of utility and content in a single, well-designed package.

iPhone users can hit the App Store to download it, or visit Kraft's iFood Assistant page to learn more.

Kraft Supports Feeding America

If Facebook is more your style and you're looking to help needy families, Kraft has partnered with SocialVibe to launch Fill a Bowl, Feed America.  The proposition here is simple and the cause is a good one -- you install the Facebook App, register at KraftFoods.com or make a cash donation to Feeding America (Kraft will match your donations dollar for dollar), and in return Kraft buys up to 3.2 million meals for people in need.  This SocialVibe/Facebook effort is a smart social media extension of a larger charitable giving program that Kraft is supporting, to make a positive impact in the real world.

As I write this Fill a Bowl, Feed America has already generated enough support to fund close to 1 million meals -- help Kraft and Feeding America get to the full 3.2 million.

Want '09 predictions? How about 50 of them?

Yep, it's that time of year again -- time for the marketing bloggerati to polish up their crystal balls and make some bold statements about what you can expect in the coming year.  And you, faithful readers, scour the web looking for even just a few useful nuggets from your favorite bloggers and industry pundits.

Well, this year Peter Kim has done everyone the favor of gathering 2009 predictions from some of the sharpest minds in marketing and social media, and pulling them together in a single eBook that contains 50 or so clear-eyed, thought provoking ideas about what the next 12 months hold for media, marketing and the web.

As one of the contributors, I've had the opportunity to read everyone's predictions and can say for sure that you'll want to download a copy right away.  Lots and lots of good stuff -- from a great cross-section of the blogging community, representing a variety of different points of view.

If you want a flavor for what the eBook has to offer, check out these thought starters from Pete's 14 Nostadami (Pete himself contributes an intro and some takeaways rather than his own predictions.)

• "Although it is now cheaper to launch an initiative leveraging Web 2.0 technology - it requires qualified and passionate people to make them successful." - David Armano
• "You may not always start the year as a leader, but you can certainly finish it that way." - Rohit Bhargava
• "Intimacy touches emotion; emotion powers conversation." - Pete Blackshaw
• "Doors are going to close all over the social web. Why? Because the money didn't come the way people thought it would." - Chris Brogan
• "The tipping point has not only *not* been reached, but could still tilt *away* from Social Media." - Todd Defren
• "There's a lot of fixing that needs to be done." - Jason Falls
• "Dwindling budgets suddenly make low-cost social media look like the pretty girl at the ball." - Ann Handley
• "We're going to develop a set of better metrics to help guide, direct and validate 'commitment'." - Joseph Jaffe
• "The movement is rooted in a desire to have quality, not quantity, as people cocoon in the face of the economic crisis." - Charlene Li
• "After a pre-qualifying wrestling match..." - Ben McConnell
• "These will be cumulative events and interactions that will build brand loyalty for the companies that pay attention to them." - Scott Monty
• "The recession will force revenue results out of social technologies." - Jeremiah Owyang
• "Companies that focus on earning love will thrive during hard times, and kick ass when good times return." - Andy Sernovitz
• "Suddenly, being Facebook friends with your mom will seem less ridiculous than following 4,000 strangers on Twitter." - Greg Verdino

But these 14 soundbites only hint at the smart ideas contained in the full eBook -- so be sure to download the complete thang.

As for me, I'll most likely expand on some of my own predictions right here on my blog over the coming few weeks.  In the meantime, I'm sure Pete and the other authors would love to hear your feedback.  Feel free to drop a comment here or any any of the contributors' own blogs.

PSFK dishes out good ideas in mobile

Trendspotting site PSFK is running a series of Good Idea Salons over the course of the coming few weeks, covering topics ranging from digital marketing and design to social media and collaboration.  These are intimate events where expert panelists talk candidly about what will really matter in 2009 and, if you're in NYC, you may want to check out one or more of the upcoming sessions.

The first Salon looked at Good Ideas in Mobile and took a deep dive into location-based services, why they matter, what the practical applications are, and what geo-location means for marketers.  PSFK has posted video from the event and it's well worth watching.

From the iPhone to mobile social networking, geo-location is a hot topic right now.  If you're not familiar with the term or just want to hear some expert opinions, I'd encourage you to watch the footage from the Good Ideas event.  If you're a geo-location whiz, you may want to skip to minute 23 (or so) and hear how the panelists see brands leveraging location to add value for mobile consumers.

[Email and feed readers click through for the video.]

10 ways the mobile future will suck

When looking at the promise of new media channels, many marketers still seem to fall back on the square-peg-round-hole routine.  They attempt to force-fit tired, old ad models into next generation marketing opportunities that demand new approaches and, in doing so, alienate consumers and deliver questionable results for their companies.  You know probably already know what this looks like -- fake corporate blogs instead of proper and personalized blogger relations, MySpace homepage takeovers instead of direct engagement with consumer community leaders, the build-it-and-they-won't-come brand islands that many companies built in Second Life a couple of years ago, mobile banners and unsolicited SMS messages instead of value-oriented branded mobile utilities.  You get the picture.

And so with the carriers and mobile ad networks repeatedly declaring each successive year the "Year of Mobile," and most marketers struggling to understand how that can possibly be the case while simultaneously fearing that they're missing out on something, ekit CEO John Diamond points a finger at some current and emergent mobile marketing practices -- and predicts that mobile will get worse (much worse) before it gets better.  To my knowledge John isn't a marketer by trade, but he should know a thing or two about the global mobile marketplace.  His company provides international devices and services for travelers and recently launched a Travel Journal service that let's travelers easily track and share their whereabouts and experiences using a combination of a blog-like web platform, mobile technologies and geolocation.  Travel Journal is supported with opt-in, geo-specific advertising.  He could be part of the problem -- but instead seems to want to help marketers get it right, beginning with his list of 10 Mobile Marketing Predictions.

In truth, John's 10 points are less about predicting the future and more about painting some likely worst case scenarios for how marketers will abuse common mobile technologies like SMS and GPS to interrupt and alienate consumers.  It's mostly a list of 10 things not to do and, for better or worse (ok - just for worse), many of his points ring true.

Give them a glance and let me know what you think.  Does John get it right?  As a marketer, what are you doing in mobile to counter some of the downsides John explores in his list?

1) Mobile marketers will send spam-like messages to consumers' phones without getting permission to do so.

2) Mobile spam will be much more annoying than all of that email and blog spam.  Mobile spam feels much more personal.

3) Marketers will learn their lessons about message relevance in reverse... most likely after the fact.  There will be many examples of what not to do.

4) Mobile communications will be significantly cheaper for consumers willing to receive marketing messages.  For example: free TV on your cellphone...

5) Consumers will revolt against being tracked by GPS, particularly if there is no clear opt in/opt out option for tracking and receiving messages.

6) Tracked consumers will have their profiles sold to marketers.  Angry consumers will rally together and form class actions against such practices, and mobile marketing regulations will be enacted.

7) Media stories will name companies that spammed and tracked their customers, smearing the names of those companies and turning away potential customers.

8) Mobile spam filtering software will be a necessity.  It could be a new evenue stream for telcos or offered as part of a bundled service.  This will be a major service differentiator and major driver for switching carriers.

9) Mobile marketing will shift its focus from text messaging to mobile web with slick offers, presentation and relevance.

10) Mobile messaging will have to become more relevant given the limited real estate and high irritation factor.

Cellphone film: mankind is no island

I guess my Wesleyan University commie-sympathizer pink socks are showing today, but I love this video.  Mankind Is No Island is a short film that explores a global social issue using nothing more than a mobile phone, found typography and a simple soundtrack.  Last month it took home the big prize at Tropfest NY, the world's largest short film festival.  Social significance aside, Mankind is yet another demonstration of the democratization of the tools we use for content creation.

[Email readers and feed demons, click through for the video.]

Hat tip hat trick: PSFK, The Tastemakers Society and Lens Culture.

Mobile ftw (my mobile marketing presentation)

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I was putting together a presentation about mobile, and got lots of great input from some of you.  Well, tomorrow (or today, depending on when you catch this post) is the day I'll deliver that presentation to an auditorium full of marketers. 

My storyline? 2009 may not be the year of mobile but that doesn't mean marketers can't find smart, effective ways to innovate in the mobile channel.  But don't think that mobile advertising models that mirror traditional ad models will cut it.  Instead, focus on five key ways your brand can add value for mobile consumers.

What are the five key ways? Well, you'll have to check out the slides.  As regular readers know, my slides typically require voiceover -- but I think you'll still get the gist.  Besides, they sure are purty.

Mobile FTW

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: mobile gregverdino)

[Feed and email readers will need to click through to view the embedded slides.]

Feel free to comment or contact me directly if you have any specific questions.

If 2009 will be the 'year of mobile'...

For the past several years, pundits and analysts (not to mention mobile ad networks and content companies) have been predicting that the 'year of mobile' is upon us.  Every year, marketers walk away disappointed that none of the forecasts were even close to accurate.

Nonetheless -- even if only on an intuitive level -- most of us understand and believe that the mobile device is becoming an increasingly important access point for consumers and we hunger for smarts about how to respond to this shift from the couch-top to the desktop to the laptop and, ultimately, to the blacktop.

And so I find myself preparing a presentation about mobility and what it means for marketers. 

I can cover anything from mobile content to mobile commerce, from presence to mobile social software to what the iPhone and Android will mean for consumers, manufacturers, carriers and marketers alike.  I could, but probably won't, talk about mobile as a paid advertising medium.

Now here's where you come in. The odds are good that most of you are both marketers and mobile phone users.  So I'd love to hear your thoughts...

How do you use your mobile device and how has this changed over the past year or so?

What do you consider to be the most exciting development in the mobile space?

What would you like to see brands do on the mobile platform?

What should they not do?

What's the one thing that you think marketers need to know about mobile?

You don't need to answer all of these.  In fact, you don't need to answer any of these directly.  I'd just love to hear your thoughts about everything that's going on in mobile, what you think is important and what you'd just as soon see die on the wireless vine.

Chime in.