Marcom this week: From A to zinc – 1/27/11 edition

From social networks' expanded ad offerings to celebrity endorsement ads for the Super Bowl, here is a look at what made headlines this week in the integrated marketing communications industry.

Social networks expand ad offerings
Facebook made a move this week to provide more social context for advertisements through Sponsored Stories. The Sponsored Stories format ditches the days of stock promotional copy and serves ads based on user interactions with a brand. The ads leverage the power a personal network has on purchase decisions by pulling content from a user’s feed to display on their friend’s page. Research shows that contextually targeted ads are more relevant to users, which increases ad effectiveness. Sounds like it will be a win-win for Facebook’s advertisers and users.

LinkedIn also beefed up its display ad offering, announcing many new features, including expanded targeting that enables advertisers to serve ads based on age, location, job title, and seniority. The expanded features were launched in an effort to improve LinkedIn's ad effectiveness and increase its share of revenue from display advertising.

With rumors swirling around impending initial public offerings, both social networking giants are finding more and more ways to monetize their sites. What do you think will be next?

Edelman Trust Barometer®: Trust across all U.S. institutions declines
According to the 2011 Edelman Trust Barometer survey, the U.S. is the only country to see trust in business and government decline. This statistic is not surprising following years of financial crisis and corporate scandal. To build trust, President and CEO Richard Edelman recommends corporations adopt a new trust architecture built on profits with a purpose, transparency in reporting, and multi-channel/multi-communicator engagement.




Super Bowl update: Celebrity endorsements all the rage
The Super Bowl is synonymous with attention-getting, low-relevance advertisements. A couple of weeks ago Vitamin IMC reported that the 2010 Celebrity Advertisements study found that celebrity ads performed below (or on par) with other advertisements. Despite these findings, advertisers continue to sign on hot (and expensive) celebrity personalities to push their product during the big game. A few noteworthy pairings include Kim Kardashian for Sketchers and Justin Bieber for Best Buy. And don’t forget about the yet-to-be-revealed mystery celeb for GoDaddy.

Marcom this week: From A to zinc is compiled by the Vitamin IMC editorial team. They can be reached at vitaminimc@gmail.com. Miss your vitamins last week? Visit January 21's “Marcom This Week.”

Marcom this week: From A to zinc – 1/7/11 edition

From Oprah Winfrey’s successful cable network launch to cash inflows and employee outflows at top social networking companies, here’s a look at what made headlines this week in the integrated marketing communications industry.

OWN Debuts with Strong Numbers
Early results show Oprah Winfrey’s new cable network – OWN – enjoyed a successful launch on New Year’s Day. For its Saturday premiere, OWN was the No. 3 cable network among women ages 25 to 54 during the 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. hours, averaging 1.2 million viewers per time slot. Sunday proved tougher, with the network attracting 968,000 viewers for the launch of “Ask Oprah’s All Stars” and only 602,000 viewers for “Master Class.” Although Oprah has a solid track record and loyal following, extending her personal brand to include a cable network isn’t without risk. However, backed by the world’s leading tastemaker, along with the many stars she has helped make famous, we don’t think the network is in bad shape. With the launch complete, we’re anxious to see the full programming schedule – and what product integration opportunities it will afford marketers.

Social Networking Site Shakeups
2011 is ushering in big changes at top social networking companies, including Facebook, Myspace and LinkedIn.

In an effort to stay private longer, Facebook struck a deal with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Digital Sky Technologies, among others, to raise $500 million. The agreement values Facebook at $50 billion. The deal also puts Facebook over the critical 500-shareholder limit set by the Securities and Exchange Commission, meaning it will be forced to begin disclosing financial information or host an initial public offering by April 2012.

In other IPO news, LinkedIn plans to go public this year, according to sources close to the matter. In fact, the social network is expected to deliver a prospectus as soon as this quarter. The company’s estimated value is $2.2 billion.

Unfortunately for Myspace, its future doesn’t look as bright. It’s rumored the social network will soon announce massive layoffs, which could lead to reductions in staff by as much as 50 percent. This news follows the company’s 30 percent reduction in staff that occurred last summer. Myspace recently redesigned its site, but it continues to lose market share, dropping to 4.75 percent after losing nearly 7 percent over the past year.

LEGO® Makes it “Click”
Thanks to this latest film short from LEGO, this week we enjoyed a momentary return to the innocent and imaginative days of childhood. Entitled “Brick Thief,” the video promotes LEGO’s idea hive, Click, which provides an online forum for sharing stories, videos and photos that depict moments of inspiration. “Brick Thief” is a sequel to “Cl!ck” and features the same oddly spectacled and mustachioed Imagineer hard at work in his lab on his latest LEGO creation. We bet you’ll be scrambling to dig out your LEGO Pirate’s Fort set before it's over.

Marcom This Week: From A to Zinc is compiled by the Vitamin IMC editorial team. They can be reached at vitaminimc@gmail.com. Miss your vitamins last week? View Jan. 1's “Marcom This Week."