What would it have looked like if social media existed during the times of Mandela's fight for freedom in South Africa? As tribute to the inspirational leader on his 94th birthday today Prenzence Digital have put together a well-executed, creative piece of work with this video on Mandela's story as told by social media - "a language we all understand today".
Which asks the question: how could the power of this medium's reach and connectivity have changed the course of South Africa's story?
Inspired? Leave your mark on Nelson Mandela Day here #MandelaStory
Whipping out your Mac at a coffee shop stirs up a whole round of snap judgement in the room - you're either a creative or tech-savvy entrepreneur; your house is one slick pad, connected by Apple devices; iPhone? obviously. Overall you must be doing pretty well for yourself if you were willing to pay more for a Mac than a cheaper Windows option, right? These branded perceptions of a Mac user may be subjective, but research conducted by Orbitz, has found that Mac users are, in fact, more likely to pay 30 percent more on a hotel room than Windows users. Therefore, in an effort to provide them with better targeted results, Orbitz website is directing Mac users to the more expensive hotel room options. Note: its not showing the same room at different prices, just landing them on the higher quality, higher priced options.
That's the story with Orbitz, but how many other websites have been using this data to narrow higher-end search results for Mac users? And if you have invested more into you laptop, does that really mean you are willing to invest more into other products and services? Source:DigitalTrends
For a mobile phone giant who has been falling out of touch with its consumers, and more accurately with its brand purpose, "Connecting People"; this is one step in the right direction to re-connect. The Nokia Gift Machine recently opened in Dubai's Mall of the Emirates and resembles a vending machine, except instead of money, users need to check-in on Foursquare to receive instant prizes, from movie tickets, chocolates and accessories to Nokia handsets. The gifts are also providing interesting marketing opportunities for their trade partners. And knowing Dubai I'm sure we can expect some luxury items to start rolling out. The Nokia Gift Machine was created by social agency 1000heads. " Nokia came to us with a specific challenge - to inspire people with a new and innovative way to blend social media and the real world" said Mike Rowe, CEO of 1000heads. Nicely played Nokia, nicely played. Source:brandchannel
From grabbing the attention of Coke to the world, that young designer who we spoke about here before, has helped Ogilvy Shanghai nab the Grand Prix award for Outdoor at the Cannes Lions festival. Proving that in a category featuring break-through technology ideas - a simple graphic can still hold its own. " The ["Coke Hands"] billboard is a lovely expression of the brand's philosophy; it's so simple, but embodies a deep meaning," said jury president Lo Sheung Yan.
Mercedes-Benz "The Invisible Drive" also won a Grand Prix for outdoor; it has used technology purposefully to communicate a clear message: the car leaves no trace. If you haven't seen it yet, you need to watch this. Source: AdAge
As a South African let me just say that there are few times when you are, ever, going to see South African men get as excited as when they are watching their favourite game. From wild hand gestures directed at the television to swearing at coaches from the stands; men are desperate to have their frustrations heard. It was insights such as this that led Carling Black Label, a beer from SAB, Brandtone and Ogilvy South Africa to the trailblazing 'Be the Coach' campaign.
Aimed at ardent soccer fans on the platform they most cherish - their mobile - the campaign centered on the most emotionally-invested game of the season Orlando Pirates vs. Kaizer Cheifs. 'Be the Coach' finally gave supporters a voice and empowered them to select the team and make live substitutions through a mobile voting platform. To enter supporters needed to buy a Black Label and SMS the unique number on their bottle cap to a mobile platform using USSD. The USSD system helped with the mass appeal of the campaign as it wasn't limited to smartphones. Supporters could then keep track of their teams through a user-friendly mobile site and keep in touch with information from the Facebook tab and microsite. The results? Watch this video. Incredible. Source:mobiThinking
While the film stars may have left, in about 5 days Cannes is about to come alive again with some of the worlds most creative minds coming together for the Cannes Lions festival, a renowned celebration of creativity in communication. And witnessing the intense level of hype marketing and communication that goes into ensuring films are a box office hit these days, makes this event possibly more prominent than a celebration of film stars?
More importantly, this year's festival is a reflection of the changing landscape of communications. And in case you needed any further confirmation this year's event marks the significant shift to mobile communications with the addition of Mobile, Branded Content and Entertainment Lions. You will also notice that fewer than half the entries in Adweek/Leo Burnett's Cannes Predictions are traditional commercials. The rest? Music videos, Facebook apps, mobile-commerce technologies... My personal favourite, the Carling Black Label: "Be the Coach campaign", for providing their core market with the platform they have all been waiting for. There a couple of reasons why this campaign is deserving of your eyeballs and a post of its own to follow. Source:Adweek
Twitter has updated its bird mascot, with the company saying the redesigned mark will now become 'the universally recognisable symbol of Twitter'. The new bird will become Twitter's main identity, replacing the former main logo, which was 'Twitter' in bubbled text. Twitter's creative director Doug Bowman (@stop) says the Twitter bird will be used to represent Twitter in all instances, adding, 'There's no longer a need for text, bubbled typefaces, or a lower-case "t" to represent Twitter. The new Twitter bird is a simplified version of the previous bird mascot, and is rendered in a slightly different shade of blue. Source:SaatchiNow
