FTC guidelines say new-media ads should stick to old rules
The Federal Trade Commission has warned advertisers against deceptive practices involving social media, regardless of the space limitations of media such as Twitter to make disclosures. "Advertisers should make sure their disclosures are clear and conspicuous on all devices and platforms that consumers may use to view their ads," FTC's Lesley Fair wrote in a blog post accompanying a new set of guidelines. Reuters
(3/12), The Wall Street Journal
(3/12)
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LinkedIn introduces ads featuring slide presentations
LinkedIn says it will sell ads with pop-up slide presentations for business-to-business marketers. The SlideShare Content Ads will appear on the website as banners that pop up when clicked, so users can browse the presentation without leaving the page. The ads can be targeted to LinkedIn users based on profile information, such as company and job title. Adweek
(3/12)
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New David Bowie album cover sparks viral sensation
A guerrilla advertising campaign for David Bowie's first album in a decade, "The Next Day," has spawned an Internet meme around the white square featured on the album's cover design. Fans have tweeted pictures of the white block's appearances around the world, such as painted on the streets of London and pasted over posters in San Francisco and Berlin. Fans also have posted so many pictures of themselves with white squares obscuring their faces or other scenes that Sony Music made a Facebook application to automatically place a white block over a fan's profile picture. Evening Standard (London)
(3/12)
SXSW panel looks at free speech and Reddit
A South by Southwest Interactive Festival panel took up the topic of social news website Reddit's extreme approach to free speech. Adrian Chen of Gawker, Farhad Manjoo of Slate and Rebecca Watson of Skepchick discussed how Reddit's most controversial voices necessitate a different approach to free speech on the site, although some Reddit users complained that the panel lacked defenders of the site's policy. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media
(3/13)
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Study: Subway wins at "social currency"
Subway ranked highest on a list of brands that use social media marketing most effectively, according to consulting firm Vivaldi Partners. The study sought to measure "social currency" by the level at which customers share information about a brand, and found that Subway scored big on engagement with its 21 million Facebook followers. Google ranked second, owing to its own Google+ network, while Target came in third for its many Facebook applications tailored to customer groups such as newlyweds and tech aficionados. Forbes
(3/12)
Other News
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How many content channels does your social media presence have?
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More than 5 |
25.49%
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3 |
20.59%
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4 |
15.69%
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5 |
12.75%
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2 |
12.75%
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0 |
9.80%
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1 |
2.94%
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How many content channels does your business need?: About three-fourths of poll respondents indicated they publish content through at least three channels, SmartBrief's Jesse Stanchak writes. That's good news, since embracing multichannel publishing is essential for reaching out to fans and making the most of each piece of content, Stanchak writes. Otherwise, "you might be leaving money on the table," he writes in SmartBrief's SmartBlog on Social Media.
Have you ever produced event coverage as part of your social media presence?
 | Yes |
| No |
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Great viral videos start with a unique perspective
The recent viral success of a video from the Dollar Shave Club extolling the virtues of an uncomplicated razor shows that companies with passionate and unconventional messages are the ones most likely to get people talking, writes Groupon co-founder Brad Keywell. He also notes the unique efforts of companies such as Blendtec, which boosted its blender sales by creating a "Will it blend?" video campaign featuring its blenders taking on items such as light bulbs and credit cards. The Wall Street Journal/The Accelerator blog
(3/12)
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Picking a pope: Will the smoke be clear?
When eligible cardinals of the Catholic Church gather to vote for a new pope, they follow centuries of tradition and rigid procedure designed to ensure no news is leaked. The only public display -- the black smoke for no consensus, white smoke to signify a pope has been chosen -- is not as reliable, however. "It's never worked all that well," says the Rev. Thomas J. Reese of the National Catholic Reporter. "I wish they'd test it and make sure it works before they go into the conclave, because last time the smoke came out gray. Everybody was [asking], 'Is it white? Is it black?' " National Public Radio/The Two-Way blog
(3/11), Reuters
(3/13)
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The more you follow advice from textbooks, blogs and articles (obviously other than this one), the less likely you are to find your own voice and create a message unique enough to go viral."
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Please contact one of our specialists for advertising opportunities,
editorial inquiries, job placements, or any other questions.
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Mailing Address:
SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004
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