Baby Boomers flock to Social Networking in 2009

Feb 1, 2010 by Dan Taylor    3 Comments    Posted under: Social Media

There’s no arguing that 2009 was a banner year for online social networking platforms. Obviously, the big players in the field, Facebook and Twitter, saw a healthy increase in user activity. A new report from eMarketer might just point to the reason why: Baby Boomers went from online consumers of digital media to social busy-bees.

The report analyzes 4 unique market segments, Millenials (14-26), Gen X (27-43), Baby Boomers (44-63) and Mature (63-75). Not surprisingly, both Millenials and Gen X ‘ers (myself included) have maintained consistently high levels of social media profiles over the past three years. Conversely, Baby Boomers and Matures saw a massive growth rate in 2009.

Looking at the numbers, 31 percent of Baby Boomers and 14 percent of Matures actively attended to (i.e. status updates, photo uploads, etc.) their profiles in 2008, while one year later, these numbers have seen a significant jump: 46 percent and 36 percent, respectively, in 2009.

With data drawn from both comScore and Anderson Analytics, Facebook came out on top as the primary social network used by Baby Boomers. MySpace took second place, but appears to be more popular with younger users (ed: still?). Third and fourth place went to Twitter and LinkedIn.

“Creating and renewing personal connections online is the biggest draw for these boomers,” said Lisa E. Phillips, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report, Boomers and Social Media. “Boomers expect that technology will help them live longer and better lives and keep them connected to family, friends, co-workers and, eventually, healthcare providers.”

What is, and should be, of interest to marketers is how this growth has scaled, and what or how do we target this influx of a completely different demographic? Targeted advertising immediately comes to mind, but my guess is that there are a number of opportunities waiting to be mined with this new information. Social/Casual gaming has been a major driver of social network use in the ‘younger’ set – is there a way to replicate this same success for an ‘older’ demographic? A recent study by Q Interactive points to the fact that female gamers make up a sizable portion of all social games played, AND that they’re brand engaged, loyal consumers. My guess is that over the course of 2010 we’ll see a new breed of applications, games, tools, etc. appearing on social networks that will try to appeal to this new-comer demographic.

Marketers to spend more on Social Media in 2010

Jan 22, 2010 by Dan Taylor    1 Comment     Posted under: Social Media

According to a new survey published by Alerian, two thirds (66%) of marketing professionals plan on allotting more in their budgets for social media engagement. 40% of respondents indicated that they’ll shift more than one-fifth of their ‘traditional’ direct marketing budgets towards digital, interactive, or social channels.

Additionally, more than two thirds (67%) of marketers surveyed indicated that social media engagement is either “increasingly important” or “critical to success”.

And it looks like marketers are also looking for data to back up their investment in social media. Thirty six percent indicated that they plan to invest in social media monitoring and analysis tools. Additional marketing techniques that marketers will be or planning on investing in:

Multi-channel campaign management: 51%
Individual email marketing: 55%
Customer analysis and reporting: 55%
Engaging individuals on their websites: 57%

Alterian CEO, David Eldridge, said, “2010 marks the start of the digital decade for marketing. Untargeted and irrelevant marketing techniques are now redundant and the results of this survey show many in the industry recognize this. The one thing to remember, however, is that investment in Social Media Marketing is futile without adequate measurement.”

With the planned spending spree, you might expect that marketers have been doing their homework, and truly know what they’re getting into. Well, think again, as only 6% responded that they are “extremely prepared” to take advantage of the wide variety that digital and social media tools represent as part of their overall marketing/customer engagement strategy. The next leap finds 19% are “very prepared”, with 35% “prepared enough”, 34% “minimally prepared” and 5% “not prepared at all. Looking at the numbers, that makes up a total of 39% (over one-third) of all respondents either “minimally” or “not” prepared at all.

Additional stats:

• 51% of marketers are expending either a “fair amount” or “significant amount” of effort to ensure integration of communication strategies. Some 31% are making “some effort,” and 7% are making “no effort” at all.
• 58% of companies incorporate clickstream/web analytics data into customer/email databases.
• 69% of marketers work with three or more separate suppliers––and 23% work with seven or more suppliers––in order to achieve all of their marketing objectives.
• Most marketers have difficulty coordinating resources across their digital and direct marketing agencies: 72% cite that level of difficulty between “neutral” to “very difficult.”

“Engaging with customers is becoming paramount and the yardstick by which we measure those brands that survive and those that don’t. Marketers now need to appeal to the individual and engage with customers on a one-to-one basis. The easiest way to achieve this is by investing in Social Media Marketing and Social Media Monitoring, and by embracing the web,” states Eldridge.

The Alterian Annual Survey 2009 sampled 1,068 marketing professionals primarily based in North America and Europe between October 1 and December 3, 2009.

Think Social Media is a Fad?

Aug 17, 2009 by Dan Taylor    12 Comments    Posted under: Social Media, Video

If you, or someone you know, just doesn’t ‘get it’, i.e. “Twitter is a waste of time,” please take 4 minutes and 23 seconds out of your busy day, watch this outstanding video from socialnomics.net and rethink the, “What’s the point?” attitude.

Back to basics

May 19, 2009 by Dan Taylor    No Comments    Posted under: News

For quite some time now, I’ve deviated from how this humble blog started out: a collection of my interests, thoughts, etc.  Granted, a lot has changed since I started this thing way back when (I’m looking at you twitter – and oh, who’s laughing now Altchiler?), but unfortunately so did the way I ran this thing.  There are plenty of folks that I know that make money from their blog, running advertising, using affiliate links, paid blogs, etc. but to be completely honest, non of that really interests me.  I’ve spent a lot of time fiddling with fancy templates, changing this code, altering those links, and yes, it’s taught me a lot about how css and xhtml work, but I think I’ve lost sight of the prize: to put my opinions out there.  And yes, I did do a few alterations to this newest template – but no where even close to some chop jobs I’ve done with past templates.

Maybe it has something to do with one of the things I do for a living, where it’s my job to write in a way that reports the news, covers recent developments in the field, etc., but that’s not really what a personal blog should be about.  That’s not to say that if I find something interesting, I’m not going to write about it, even if it is a press release, but rather, I want this platform to stand as a location where I can simply put my thoughts out there.  If anyone is listening, great, if not…well, in the end, that’s fine too.  I’m tired of trying to be the ‘expert’ on any one specific topic, because at the end of the day, I AM one of those rare people that have a lot of interests, and luckily for me, I tend to be halfway decent at whatever I put my mind to.  With that said, this can also be a blessing and a curse, as I often feel a ‘jack of all trades’ but a master of none.  I’ll never forget the day that my high school music teacher Connie Zweifel said to me, “You’re going to have a really hard time in the future, because you’re so good at so many things, you’ll never be happy to settle on just one.”  Can I get an amen to Connie?

So I make this promise now, both to myself, and to anyone out there reading:  I’m getting back on track with turnthescrew.  This blog will no longer be about just social media topics.  It will no longer be about video.  It will no longer be about photography.  It will no longer be about design.  It will be about all of them – and more!

To those of you that have had a regular read over the years, thanks.  To those of you that may just be tuning in – welcome.

Chevys introduces social media widget

Dec 15, 2008 by Dan Taylor    2 Comments    Posted under: Social Media

TexMex restaurant chain Chevys recently launched a widget based holiday flash game that seeks to engage customers and entice them through the door with a special holiday offer.

Working as a Social Media consultant, I spend lots of time talking to company and business owners about what Social Media is, what it can do for their company, and how to use it.  Needless to say, when a major restaurant chain breaks the mold and reaches out to customers in new and innovative ways, well…it just makes me jump for joy.

Thanks to clearspring, the widget is embeddable on any blog, web site, or social networking profile, with the top three traffic drivers winning a party valued at $500.  It features a “Mexican jumping bean” flash based game, Chevys Fresh Mex recipes, a store locator (including local taxi information), Chevys recipes, and holiday gift cards.  When users make a gift card purchase through the Compadre widget they automatically receive a $10 credit towards their next meal with a $50 purchase.

This is really an outstanding example of not only engaging users via social media, but following through on the deal with an added value (the $10 off).  I’ve got to hand it to the folks at Chevys – tossing the local taxi information in there is really quite genius.  By providing this info Chevys is keeping the user actively involved with the widget, rather than sending you out to look for it yourself, thereby further increasing your likelihood to follow through on your initial, hmmm…I’m kinda hungry, where should I have lunch…thought process.  Likewise with the recipes.  Do YOU know how to make Flan?  Me neither – but thanks to Chevys widget, you’re no further than a click away from a recipe even my ‘I have no skills in the kitchen’ brain can follow.  That and they’ve also got you back to home base: the Chevys website, further increasing your likelihood to visit the restaurant in the near future.

And now for the cons.  While I applaud Chevys venture into the Social Media space, given the time and money spent on the development of this widget, it’s almost pointless.  The features are great, but the meat and potatoes of the widget, the actual game, is completely crap.  How long did you bother to keep those beans in the air?  15 seconds?  20?  Right.  Given the runaway success of Tower Defense flash based games, I’m really quite surprised to not see Chevys go down this line.  Perhaps they might have been better off consulting a Social Media Consultant with Video Game Inudstry Experience?

Rosemary Doody, Director of Marketing for Chevys Fresh Mex comments, “It’s no surprise that consumers are actively seeking value and discounts during the holidays and according to a recent social media study, 93% of Americans believe a company should have a presence in social media. This new and exciting medium gives Chevys a great way to engage with our current guests and attract new ones. Chevys has one of the most competitive holiday gift card offers in the industry. We want consumers to be aware of that. Combined with the opportunity for three online users to win a party valued at $500, consumers will find The Compadre widget fun, engaging and a tremendous holiday value.”

Amen Rosemary.  The Chevys Compadre widget arrives just in time to pump it full of holiday gift card value and a great example of large companies engaging in the use of Social Media.  It’s a win-win situation all around.

Facebook Connect goes live

Dec 5, 2008 by Dan Taylor    3 Comments    Posted under: News, Social Media, Technology

Stand back and get ready social web users, Facebook has officially opened the single sign-on technology floodgates.  Facebook’s ‘not-so-under-the-wraps’ Connect feature is now live, and can be implemented by any site via the company’s web developer platform.

Facebook says that 100+ sites have added the technology during the pre-launch testing phase, and/or plan on implementing the tech in the coming weeks.  You may have heard of just a few of them: Digg, Gawker, Vimeo, CNET, and several major universities.

Facebook’s 125 million (gave or take a few…but who’s counting?) users can now participate on any one of these sites by signing in with their Facebook ID.  This Facebook login will then in turn re-broadcast their actions on this site to their friends within Facebook.  Facebook ensures that users will have privacy controls so that only approved info gets the re-broadcast (‘cause I’d hate for my comments on imalumberjackandidontcare.com to be rebroadcast).

Connect will also assist in matching up your Facebook friends on this external site.  I.e. you may not have known that Kaveh Rastegar is also a member of Vimeo, and enjoys indie filmmakers.  Connect will ensure that the two of you also have the options to be friends on Vimeo.  Likewise, if Kaveh posts a comment on a video, and logs in via Connect, his comments will then show up in his news feed for all his friends to see and comment on as well.

However.  Having these open standards does carry a bit of a price tag.  The social data that is collected by using these interacts gets fed back into Facebook.  By utilizing the Connect technology, the site owner agrees to share any data it gathers about users who use Connect with Facebook – and Facebook alone.  Hmmm.  Facebook has found itself in this tub of hot water before (think Beacon Advertising System), is this just another attempt at skirting the issue by having third-party sites collect the data?  Hopefully, I’m way off here.

This technology is nothing new, as OpenID and Open Stack are currently in existence, but have been a bit late to the party, held up by a not-so-hot user experience and security.  OpenID and Open Stack are a set of open source technologies being developed by Google, Yahoo!, MySpace, Plaxo, and other social sites that would allow the end user a larger system of portable data.  Truth be told, I’m a big fan of Facebook, and could easily see them getting this one just right.

And apparently, I’m not the only one.  In a recent press release, Facebook states that,

“two out of three new registrations at participating sites were generated through Facebook Connect during the testing phase.”

66%!  Wow!  And the sticky sweet Facebook goodness doesn’t stop at the registration page.

“users who logged in using Facebook Connect were 50 percent more likely to participate socially on a website than non-Facebook Connect users once logged in.”

Dang!  Those are some mighty big numbers.  While the jury is still out on whether Connect can deliver all that it promises, it’s looking mighty good thus far.  Let’s keep an eye on this one.

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About

Jun 15, 2008 by Dan Taylor    Comments Off    Posted under:

About Me

Hi!  My name is Dan, and I make pretty things.

I’m 35 years old, living in Vienna, Austria.  Here’s a short summary of what I’ve been up to:

• 1999 – Graduated the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY with a Bachelors of Music degree – Vocal Performance
• 2000 – In between singing gigs, I started doing client acquisition/business development with an internet startup, bla-bla.com
• 2001 – On 9/11 I was living in Manhattan, and experienced that truly odd day.  Shortly thereafter I was offered a job in Oxford, UK where I worked as a graphic designer
• 2003 – Returned to the U.S. to start up the American sibling company of the UK parent company I was working with.  This time around as the National Recruitment Manager
• 2006 – Served as Director of Marketing at flix55.com, a video sharing site working closely with a WLNY, a major NYC television outlet
• 2007 – Returned to Europe with my wife, settling in Vienna
• Current – Working as an independent digital media consultant

As you can see, I’ve worn a number of hats over the past 10 or so years, and each position has taught me something unique, which makes for the entire Dan Taylor experience.  I’m a ‘learning through doing’ kinda guy, and I see no project too big to take on.

The goal of turnthescrew.com, which originally started out as an a place to host my images, is simply an outlet for any and all creative work, social media and all things digital news, things I find amusing, or anything else that might be of interested to like minded folk.  In addition, it’s an experimentation platform, which means I try out a lot of ideas here, and pass the best practices on to my clients.

The Long Version

I grew up in a small town in Upstate, NY, went to University in Rochester, NY to study Opera singing, figured out it wasn’t really for me, and then landed my first ‘real job’ during the first internet boom at a company titled bla-bla.com. Even though the name was strange, I learned a ton of valuable information, not only about the business of ‘teh internetz’, but about business, specifically sales and marketing, from the good folks at bla-bla.

I’ve lived in Glens Falls, NY, Rochester, NY, Toronto, New York City, Oxford, UK, Philadelphia, PA, Mineola, NY, and Vienna, Austria. Some might say that being on tour all summer would qualify as a separate address, but I discount this.  I enjoy traveling, but don’t do as much of it as I’d like.

My interests are so varied that I could talk your head off about each topic, but the main things I like to do outside of the work related sphere would include making person video projects, photo projects, skiing, and playing video games (although, technically – that’s part of one of my consulting jobs).  I’ve also been known to lay down a groovy deep house set, or two, and like to pick up the 4 and 6 stings once in a while.  I studied cello as a kid, and would like to start playing it again.  And last but not least, as an American living in Europe, it’s just to hard not to sample some of the finest beers on earth.

I’m currently working with both MindMeister.com and fatfoogoo.com on various marketing initiatives.  If you’re interested in what I can do for you, please fill in the contact form below, and I’ll get back to you shortly.

All the best,