Why do you deserve to be here? Brands on Twitter

Last night on Chelsea Handler they were complaining about brands being on Twitter, specifically questioning why on earth Denny's has a Twitter account and what could they possibly be tweeting about.

"This weekend, try one of our delicious new skillets!" A recent Denny's post, true story.

Chelsea went on to say she doesn't understand why half of the people on Twitter are on there, they clearly have nothing to say. She argued that unless you're a comedian you shouldn't be allowed to tweet - which I don't necessarily agree with, but makes a good point. Of all the people on Twitter who uses it most properly? Comedians and celebrities for sure - dynamic, two-way and frequently. Marketers and brands usually not - stagnant, one-way and infrequently. There are exceptions of course, WholeFoods, Zappos, but these have positioned themselves as comedians and celebrities on Twitter rather than brands; these brands often don't even talk about their own products.

Maybe there should be a an entrance exam for Twitter: "why do you deserve to be here in 140 characters or less?" I bet Chelsea would be accepted.

Social media takes over the world.

This What the F**K is Social Media Now presentation by Marta Kagan of Espresso is both hilarious and impactful. The slew of stats just confirms that our world is brainwashed by social media, not that that's a bad thing...

My favorite holy sh*t stats:

• 500 billion minutes a month spent on Facebook? Ridiculous! I wonder how much the average person contributes to this?
• 1/3 of women check Facebook as soon as they wake up in the AM? Ladies...depending on how early you wake up, probably not that much has happened since you checked before you went to sleep.
• 1 in 6 marriages start on a social network: Well, not surprising considering Facebook causes cheating. What's the stat for divorces that start on a social network?

There's a bunch of other great stuff in here--social media for public outreach and a great quote by Shiv Singh (slide 63) that pinpoints the problem with most marketing social media efforts these days: social media isn't meant for "marketing", it's meant for people.

What the F**k is Social Media NOW?

View more presentations from Marta Kagan.

Facebook Cheaters? Has Facebook increased cheating rates?

An article by CNN claims that cheating on a spouse via Facebook has become so prevalent that there are even sites dedicated to discussing the trend and coping with the situation. But is it fair to blame Facebook? Maybe it is. Facebook is like a never ending high school reunion. It has made it super easy to reconnect with the "one that got away". That is if the one that got away happens to be your 17 yr old idea of love...

x posted from Treffpunkt

Fair + Balance rarely = Fair Balance

During a discussion last week about the past year of FDA warnings, my team and I had a lively conversation about changes to the digital landscape in Pharma marketing. In particular we got into a debate about the concern that "FAIR BALANCE" is neither "fair" nor "balanced".

Green Stuff (week 2)

Well I realize this stuff is not digital, like the Interweb or your ipod, but it's equally as cool and interesting. This week I learned that being green at Starbucks is kinda tough, and waterless urinals save water, but not hygiene.