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Sometimes, we who live online forget that “interactivity” and “creativity” are independent of online/offline.

If we think that traditional supports do not offer “interactivity” and “creativity”... we are wrong! Not to mention attempts to use Bluetooth (yes, I'm skeptical), I've seen 'outdoors' that whistle and 'outdoors' that speak but the Australian Northland Professional did something simple, creative and different.

Using posters, Northland offered some models of its hats, gloves and cassols on about 50 posters spread throughout the city of Graz. Each poster had posted about 20 articles, totaling about 1000 articles that were replaced daily.

A video on the company’s website showed the effort of some “consumers” to get their “offer”.

A simple campaign, with average budget (about EUR 35,000) and that created Buzz and a Viral from offline.

When we join a product offer strategy, the possibility of testing it (tryvertising) and a brand history, we have a combination that few consumers can resist!

P.S.: I leave two reference links on “ tryvertising ” and “ status stories “.

Google, probably in response to the release of Facebook Connect, opened to the public its Universal Social Networking system: Google Friend Connect.

Still 3 posts ago I wrote Here. on the strategy of Google Social Networking and on Google Friend Connect. Two days ago I finally received the invitation to the now public Beta from Google Friend Connect. Why don't I resist testing and, taking the words of Someone which is already connected to this Blog, I also want to see and know the faces of those who waste their time here, added Widget to the side column.

http://vitormagalhaes.com/canvas.html#url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Ffriendconnect%2Fgadgets%2Fmembers.xml&canvas=1&site=14826088229648512807&caller=http%3A%2F%2Fvitormagalhaes.com%2F&view-params=%7B%22skin%22%3A%7B%22HEIGHT%22%3A%22250%22%2C%22BORDER_COLOR%22%3A%22%23cccccc%22%2C%22ENDCAP_BG_COLOR%22%3A%22%23e0ecff%22%2C%22ENDCAP_TEXT_COLOR%22%3A%22%23333333%22%2C%22ENDCAP_LINK_COLOR%22%3A%22%230000cc%22%2C%22ALTERNATE_BG_COLOR%22%3A%22%23ffffff%22%2C%22CONTENT_BG_COLOR%22%3A%22%23ffffff%22%2C%22CONTENT_LINK_COLOR%22%3A%22%230000cc%22%2C%22CONTENT_TEXT_COLOR%22%3A%22%23333333%22%2C%22CONTENT_SECONDARY_LINK_COLOR%22%3A%22%237777cc%22%2C%22CONTENT_SECONDARY_TEXT_COLOR%22%3A%22%23666666%22%2C%22CONTENT_HEADLINE_COLOR%22%3A%22%23333333%22%7D%7D

So, by repeating myself, let's connect and let's get social!

The way teenagers today use the Internet is transforming learning processes in a way that most adults, many connected with education and the educational system, do not understand.

The use of digital media and the development of technical and social knowledge, as in all changes and revolutions, represent an enormous opportunity that must be taken advantage of by the educational system.         

          

This is the conclusion that 28 researchers from the University of California, Berkeley and the MacArthur Foundation have reached over three years after interviewing more than 800 teenagers and their parents, one-on-one and in focus groups, and after having observed more than 5000 hours of these teenagers on websites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and other online communities, documenting “how” and “with” what purpose they use digital media.

Called “ Living and Learning With New Media “, the study articulates the value of Social Networking, text messages and other forms of “new media”, better than any other report that has seen for this purpose. 

The report has a  two-page summary, one  30-page paper   and a  online book with 12 chapters   titled “ Hanging Out, Messing Around, Geeking Out: Living and Learning with New Media” ( MIT Press will be offering a print version of the book soon).

“ It may be a surprise for parents to know that their children’s time online is not wasted,” says Mizuko Ito of the University of California, an investigator and one of the people responsible for the report. “There are myths about the time that teenagers spend online – that is dangerous or that makes them dangerous. But we found that time spent online is essential for them to develop the technical and social knowledge they need to become competent citizens in the digital age.”

The report shows that:

• There is a new and significant “generation gap” in the way adolescents and adults perceive the importance of online activity: adults usually have a black vision of what teenagers do (wasn’t it always so?) online, and often see online activity as dangerous and as an unproductive distraction. In contrast, adolescents perceive the social value of online activity and feel highly motivated to participate;                  

• By participating online, adolescents navigate complex, technical and social worlds where they develop the technical and social knowledge they need for full participation in contemporary society; 

• The social worlds where adolescents participate have new types of dynamics: online socialization is permanent, public, involves the management of elaborate networks of friends and acquaintances and is always “on”;

• Teenagers, more than adults, are highly motivated by learning from their network members: the Internet provides new types of public spaces for teenagers to interact and receive feedback from each other, sharing knowledge and experiences;  

• On the other hand, most teenagers do not take advantage of all Internet learning opportunities because they only explore social aspects and neglect other learning opportunities, usually the less popular ones in their circle of friends and online acquaintances.

 

Personal note (like all Blog, okay!:)):

Social Networking and Digital Media bring functionalities and new rhythms but, like almost everything supposedly new or new, some distancing and common sense makes us see and realize that they change perspectives but in essence, the way we socialize and learn is a human and non-tech characteristic.

If we look back, generation gap has always been present. Whether with movements and moments like Camusian existentialism (Camus marked me more than Sartre), Summer of 68, “flower power”, Punk, Gothic, cinema, technology, the main challenge ends up being in the factor “time” and “amplification”. Today, different generation gaps are created within the same generation and given the excess of information, as parents and educators, we have a greater challenge than in the past: not to let ourselves be overcome by the various “gaps”.

Most of the social tools available in the online world “amplify” or “accelerate” characteristics of any social tool, namely the focus on what is “most popular” in our social circle.

As parents and educators we continue to have the same challenges as always: helping to find the best spaces for the development of specific skills, where they can extend their knowledge networks with common interests. 

That is, our usual role as parents!

Image not recoveredhardway7777.jpg

(via Marketing Transformation )

Google recently published a Sitemap file that contained URLs of public profiles of Google accounts.

Now they've made profile research available. If you want to test, you can do so by putting names or keywords in the search box below:

If today it starts to be critical for any company to appear well positioned on Google, giving rise to SEO and SMO techniques and businesses, at a time when the individual and the brand “I” are increasingly promoted, it is not necessary to explain that the “I” will want to have a Google profile.

When evaluating the recent Google Profiles it is not by chance that Google, after having one of the first successful communities (Orkut) has never invested in its promotion and development. At least nothing comparable to what you did with GMail, Google Calendar, Google Reader, Google Maps, Google Docs, among many more projects, applications and services (Orkut was always something external to Google; a bastard project).

 

And it's not that Google doesn't believe in Social Networking. Quite the opposite! The truth is that instead of competing directly with a Facebook, MySpace, Hi5 and everyone else, it prefers to position itself as an “enabler” while keeping the focus where it interests you: information.

 

As more and more platforms appear on the market, the selection of these platforms is becoming increasingly complex. Creation costs are increasing and selection decisions will focus on one/two platforms according to cost/benefit analysis.

 

Instead of launching another Social Networking platform, Google is betting on being facilitator, or “enabler”, providing developers with simple ways to create applications that work and share information on all social networks. 

In fact, Google’s Social Networking strategy goes a little further:

1. Open Social : Last year Google launched a set of APIs (programming interfaces), called Open Social, which enable programmers to access the main functionalities, and data, of social networks. These APIs are divided into 3 sets:

    - Profile information (user data);

    - Information of friends (social graph);

    - Activities (what happened, news, etc.).

To the Open Social they joined: MySpace, hi5, linkedin, plaxo, orkut (clear), friendster, ning, Bebo, xing, Six Apart, SalesForce, Viadeo, Oracle, engagement.com, iLike, RockYou, Slide, imeem, Hyves, Tianji, among other networks that come together...

The network that keeps out, closed: Facebook. Until when?

2. OpenID: Google has assumed the use of OpenID, not in the open perspective of the single user/password but while providing OpenID with GMail address. Google's goal is to allow GMail's email address to be the unique "Login". This is actually one of Google’s first unopened steps... but one understands how much GMail is reinforced by revenge...

3. OAuth: after  Blaine Cook and  Chris Messina have begun the development of OAuth as an open protocol to allow secure authorization of APIs, allowing web, mobile or Desktop applications to publish and interact safely with protected data, Google joins the initial Draft team in 2007. 

Taking advantage of the “ Open Social “, “ OpenID ” and “ OAuth “, Google anticipates and launches the Google Friend Connect, an ambitious step that makes this strategy very clear: Let’s Get Social!

 

Any site, regardless of the size, can now have social networking features. Simply add Google Friend Connect Widgets to take advantage of links between users. And at a time when the Chat Marketing ” gains momentum... it makes a lot of sense to provide tools that increase conversation... on the site itself!

Google Friend Connect actually goes a little further because it not only joins the 3 open standards I described as APIs that own Facebook, MySpace and Google themselves. That is, it not only anticipates itself but takes advantage of Facebook’s “closed” and “protective” postures.

For all this... Let’s Get Social!

** Question**: What do engineers do on Google to spend time?

Answer: Order an information terabyte in 68 seconds!

• What's next?

Answer: Order a petabyte of information in approximately 6 hours!

It almost sounds like a joke but... it's not:

Sorting 1pb with mapreduce

Still on the subject of telepresence and immersion, a video that has been a long time but deserves to be “** heard** ” attentively.

Headphones and eyes are required ** Closed**. 

If you want to know more about holophony:

http://www.sound-ideas.com/holophonic.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holophonic

http://www.holophonic.ch/newsite/index.php

A Cone Business recently held a online polling to 1092 Americans (525 men and 567 women over 18 years old, with a margin of error of +/- 3%) who use “Social Media” websites. Some statistics resulting from this survey: 

 

• 60% interact with companies using Social Media;

• 93% say companies should have presence on “Social Media” websites;

• 85% say that companies should not only be present but should interact with their customers in these ways;

• 56% say they feel a stronger connection and are more satisfied with companies when they can interact with them in these environments;

• 43% say companies should use Social Media to solve customer problems;

• 41% say companies should use “Social Media” to get feedback on products and services.

“Social Media” asserts itself as a new form of customer support. When a “Social Media”-oriented customer support service is combined with the marketer’s work, it becomes a force for solving problems in a more credible and cost-effective way. If we associate the inherent Research opportunities, Social Media goes to the obvious strategy category.  

Num previous article I said Customer Support is New Marketing. Despite being common sense, the title of this post with a little logic tells us that “Social Media” is part of New Marketing.

Curiosity: Nathan Midgley, editor of Travel Weekly, presents an example, followed in real time, customer support guided by “Social Media” of an English company in the tourism sector.

http://www.wordle.net/gallery/wrdl/281763/vitormagalhaes.com Wordle victormagalhas. with

It may sound strange but I tend to criticize... trends. On the Internet, I like tags because they come in handy. Nothing else. The concept of TagCloud is usually indifferent to me but the Wordle  It's different. More than creating TagClouds, it gives them an aesthetic dimension and a visual identity. Create aesthetically attractive images of... information! Or if you want words.

On top, you can see an example generated yesterday from this blog. It makes me want to print it in a decent format and make it a painting.

*Idea: create “wordles” of national websites and make an exhibition. Anybody in?

Someone said “Words are Weapons”... why not “Words are Art”.