it may just be me, but I seem to have returned from my Easter adventures in TasVegas to a bit of a utility and relationship-building love in. generosity, it seems, is all around...
first up, as reported in Contagious, is a trailer (above) for mobile game The Nightjar, an experience which places you alone in space and challenges you to escape using only sound. the app will use 3D sound and will be voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch of the parish of Sherlock Holmes. all generously provided by the marketing efforts of Wrigley's 5 Gum and all very brilliant, but its what lies behind it that is even more intriguing...
AMV BBDO creative partner Thiago de Moraes explained to Contagious that The Nightjar is the first in a five-year (ie forever in marketing terms) effort to create 'The 5 Experience'. combining film, art, fashion and music, the project aims to "create a new and unique experience for participants at every single touch point. the idea of The 5 Experience is to turn Wrigleys into an entertainment company as much as it is a company that makes gum ... [we're] going to create brilliant new sensorial experiences that people can take part in."
the 5 experience from Wrigley: we like
imagine that. a company that makes gum deciding that its not - as far as marketing is concerned - in the business of making gum. but is rather an entertainment company. imagine the combined available marketing spend of Wrigley's 5 Gum being invested in entertainment utility for it's target audience. if I was a competitor I'd be keeping the closest eye on how the 5 experience progresses.
next up, generosity knows no bounds from Turner's TruTV, who asked fans to rally to the 'Operation Repo' Facebook page. in return they got nothing less than an entire episode made just for them. AdAge reports that for the first time, a program has created a Facebook-only full-length episode as the fans' prize (for reaching 500,000 likes).
the Operation Repo facebook page. reward fans for liking the show? hell yeah!
it a significant gesture to existing and potential fans but also to Facebook. the economics of the exercise must have had to shift, with the cost per viewer on Facebook being significantly higher than the equivalent CPV on broadcast TV. but, as TruTV may have gathered, not all viewers are created equal. they have, quite rightly, decided that the increased cost per view for a dedicated and advocating audience is more than worth it.
but wait, there's more.
the spirit of generosity is also alive and well with new media megaliths Google and Facebook, who in recent days have both launched outreach programs to agencies of all people.
Mumbrella reports that the Google Engage For Agencies program will see agencies and consultants looking to help clients with products such as AdWords and the Google Display advertising network get preferential support including training and events.
meanwhile, this month saw Facebook launch Facebook Studio. the effort see's the social network create a platform on which creatives can share ideas, comment on (Facebook) campaigns and learn what it takes to create a successful FB brand page.
Facebook Studio - building bridges with agencies
aimed at ad agencies, PR firms and media strategy companies, creativityonline reports that the move is "a first step in a give-and-take dialogue between Facebook and the creative advertising world ... until now, Facebook has been mostly hands-off with agencies, letting them navigate the frequently changing Facebook waters without a compass" ... Blake Chandlee, head of Facebook's newly formed agency relations team commented that "we need to do a better job of engaging with agencies" ... this from the new head of new agency relations team.
from Wrigleys' efforts to entertain the young people of our planet and Operation Repo's reward of it's show's fans, to Google and Facebook's generous agency outreach and support programs, the spirit love and understanding (as Cher so eloquently put it) does seem to be all around at the moment.
the cynic might observe that these are nothing more than veiled attempts to influence an audience. that Wrigleys just want to sell more gum. that TruTV want more fans. that Google and Facebook just want more ins with agencies to sell more of what they sell, to more clients, more often...
of course they do!
and that's absolutely fine. in fact it's great. because if a company want's me to buy more of their gum I'd rather they entertained me into it. if a TV show want's me to like them on Facebook I'd rather they rewarded me for doing so. and if Google and Facebook want me to be more effective at planning their wares by making me more familiar with what they have I'd rather they engaged me in and rewarded me for having a conversation about doing so.
because it's quid pro quo. and it always has been. and it always will be. the game hasn't changed, but the currency has. engagement and reward are the new reach and frequency. and thank goodness for that.
tremendous use of Cher song titles Chris and nice post.
I think they got so many things right in Bugsy Malone but in particular with the song at the end - "you give a little love and it all comes back to you"
As true today as its ever been and increasingly true for brands / companies as well as people
Posted by: david wilding | Thursday, 28 April 2011 at 16:03