Category Archives: social media

two weeks on foursquare

August 9, 2010 karimkanji

I don’t own a smartphone. Well, technically I do. It’s an old BlackBerry but it’s dumb because it lacks a data package. Not smart, I know. I’m waiting to switch to an Android device once my contract with Rogers ends.

However, from time to time I get blessed with a smartphone to test drive. The latest one was a Sony Ericsson X10 mini. It’s an Android-powered touchscreen phone that sits in the palm of your hand. For the past two weeks, its been a joy to use.

I took this opportunity to not just test the phone but also a popular app called Foursquare.

According to Wikipedia, “Foursquare is a location-based social networking website, software for mobile devices, and also a game. Users “check-in” at venues using a mobile website, text messaging or a device-specific application.They are then awarded points and sometimes “badges.””

People within the marketing and digital space, such as Mitch Joel and Chris Brogan, have opined about Foursquare recently.

Now it’s my turn. Here are some observations from my two weeks with Foursquare:

3rd Party Apps. Some people didn’t like it when I my check-in’s on Foursquare were posted on my Twitter feed. Okay, only one person actually told me. I can’t say for sure if anyone else was upset. My Twitter followers increased by more than 200 during the time period I was using Foursquare. But that doesn’t mean there is any correlation between the two. I understand not everyone is going to like everything I tweet about. To say that 3rd party apps is annoying is baseless, I feel. What’s the difference if I tweet: “I’m at work” rather than using Foursquare to say the same thing? I don’t see the difference. Maybe it’s just a personal preference.
Weird locations. Why people have to create locations about their partner’s body parts is beyond me.
Value of badges and Mayoralships. I’ve heard that Starbucks gives free coffee to “mayors” and I’ve seen Freshii give discounts as well. However, what is the real value of having badges such as “25 check-ins” or being the mayor of a gas station? There are locations, brands and company’s that may not be fully in-tune with Foursquare. Heck, many are still figuring out the why and how about Facebook. Nevertheless, I think there can be great value if a brand sponsors a badge or recognizes someone who is the mayor of their location. Imagine getting free food if you’re the mayor of your local pizza store? Or getting a signed jersey if you’re the mayor of the Air Canada Centre?
Employee Check in. Is your boss paying you based on what time you check in on Foursquare at work? If brands want to reward people through Foursquare, then having employees check-in us counterproductive.
Tips. Many of the places I checked into had no tips. And the ones that did have tips were not so useful. I do know that the city of Chicago uses the Tip section to educate and encourage visitors and tourists to see various locations throughout the city. More brands need to take ownership of this feature to let their consumers and fans know what is going on. Theaters and cinemas would be well advised to at least put show times and other show information in this section.
Only for smartphones. Although Foursquare is popular it has yet to grow at the same rate as other more recent social media tools. My thoughts: only people with smartphones can really use Foursquare. You can’t use it via SMS or even if you login to your account via your desktop. I think Foursquare should invest in SMS technology. Why? Gaining a share in this market can only lead to more use by consumers and more adoption by brands. Foursquare can only win.
Goldmine. Although most brands may not have figured out how to take advantage of consumers using Foursquare, marketers can and should be. Location-based social networking apps like Foursquare and Gowalla may (or may not) be the next marketing frontier. Those who find a cool, fun and innovative way to engage with users and consumers will benefit from being at the forefront.

Do you or have you used Foursquare? I would love to hear your thoughts on this tool. Please feel free to comment.

social media, sports

build it

July 27, 2010 karimkanji

…and they will come. Remember the line from Field of Dreams? In the movie, Kevin Costner’s character builds a baseball diamond in the middle of his cornfield. Why? Well, I don’t want to spoil the movie (you still haven’t seen it?!) but he believes that baseball players will come to play on his diamond. He just has to build it.

It’s something the Toronto Blue Jays have been trying to do since the lockout in 1994/5.

I must give them credit. They’ve tried almost everything.

Flashback Fridays, All You Can Eat campaigns, 80s night, Tweeting Tuesdays, new field turf, setting up Twitter and Facebook accounts and filling it with content, Jr. Jays games on Saturdays, Father’s Day camp-outs, School Day deals in the summer, Flex Packs, $100 season tickets, signing free agents, season ticket holder gatherings, and I could go on and on. But you get the point.

Before I continue let me address one point. Winning won’t solve this. Here’s why: Winning will only happen AFTER people become fans who attend games. It is clear Rogers will only fund the Jays payroll to a level in direct proportion to the revenues generated from ticket sales. So, let’s move onto getting asses (sorry I swore Mom) into seats.

ENGAGE IRL.

Engage In Real Life. It’s the key (at least a BIG key) to social media and modern marketing today. Especially when we talk about live sporting events. And don’t just engage with anyone. It’s important to reach out to all your fans. Young and old. But I would also suggest focusing on engaging the INFLUENCERS.

Influencers are the people who will get the people to come to the park. They are the big mouths, the party hosts. They are the one’s that can mobilize a movement. Malcolm Gladwell talks about connectors, mavens and persuaders. Influencers are a combination of all three.

Influencers can connect people; they can share with people; and they are charismatic.

It’s not about the technology alone. Things like Tweet Ups, Meet Ups, and other social media events are popular and the place to be NOT because of Twitter, Facebook, etc. They are popular because people are engaged WITH each other on a personal level and not just on a pixel level.

We are not living in a technological age. We are living in a social age. Time to stop hiding behind Jays Care, @BlueJays and the corporate desk. Let’s get social.

So, Mr. Blue Jays, get in contact with these “community leaders” and let them work with you. They are great at listening to people and mobilizing them. They, and everyone else, wants the Toronto Blue Jays to succeed at the gate and in the standings.

They may not be able to fill a roster but they will make sure that the blue seats don’t out-number the Blue fans.

**My next blog post will illustrate what the most popular professional sports team in Canada is doing to engage with its community despite being the hardest ticket to get in town.**

What are your thoughts? Do you agree? Do you think my idea is something out of left field? Feel free to comment below.

social media, Uncategorized

old spice

July 16, 2010 karimkanji

If you read this blog then you’re probably familiar with the latest “internet sensation” Isaiah Mustafa. If that name doesn’t ring a bell, he’s the one-time football player who has been starring in the recent Old Spice YouTube and Twitter campaign.

Toronto-based self-professed tech-geek Maurice Cacho, from GeekTown.ca, recently penned an article about this campaign. In his piece Moe asks whether or not the popular online campaign resulted in any increased sales:

Given that the videos had hundreds of thousands of views and everybody is talking about it – did it help sales? I contacted P & G this afternoon – they’re staying mum because they’re in the “quiet period prior to declaring earnings on August 3.”

I like Moe, so please don’t take the rest of this blog as an attack on him. (Plus, he’s got bigger biceps than me and could crush me anytime so why would I attack him?)

The question Moe asks rarely ever gets asked of other marketing campaigns. We watch the cool Super Bowl ads every year but never ask if GoDaddy saw increased sales by showing half-naked women on their commercials. Why not? It costs a cool $1 million to advertise on the Big Game. We never ask whether more traditional marketing programs directly increase a brands profits or sales.

But we ask this question of social media. Why?

Because it’s the new kid on the block.

A person and even a company can set up an account on almost any social media site at no cost. And traditionally they’ve been told that to “make money you have to invest money.” So I think it’s hard for people to think that something “free” can result in increased sales.

Here’s the deal. Social media is not free. That’s because social media (and I’m talking about social media as a part of marketing here) is not only telling the world what you ate for lunch. Like I said in my previous pot, it’s about engagement. and that takes time and effort and smart people who can make things happen. That’s why Old Spice (Proctor and Gamble) hired a firm to create the Old Spice campaign.

Secondly, social media should not be measured in isolation from a company’s overall marketing, sales and customer service strategy. It’s a part of a bigger animal.

But it’s an important part.

What did you think of the Old Spice YouTube campaign? Do you think social media success should be measured in isolation?

social media, twitter

its about engagement

July 14, 2010 karimkanji

I’ve recently come back from a fantastic holiday in East Africa (which included a quick getaway to South Africa to watch Ghana spank USA during the Round of 16).

I had the opportunity to meet many business people and entrepreneurs in Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and even South Africa. One of the questions I got asked was, “I don’t get Twitter. Why should I bother reading what people are eating for breakfast?!” Good point.

Allow me to make my point now: Being on Twitter is not the same as being engaged on Twitter.

Now let’s discuss this.

The most popular accounts on Twitter are people you and I will probably never meet on a one-on-one basis. Movie stars and TV personalities have huge followings because of the nature of their industry. But they are not engaged with you and you are not really engaged with them. They tell you what they have for lunch and you think that’s the reason Twitter was invented.

On the flip side, there are real people making real connections on Twitter. It’s not the number of followers you have. Instead, it’s about the depth of conversations you have on Twitter.

I use Twitter to brand myself. I tweet about what I’m doing like waiting in the hospital for malaria tests. But I also use it as a feed for my articles I write on Techvibes as well as on this blog. And I also promote links to other tweets (called ReTweets) and articles that I find interesting.

Finally, I use Twitter to crowdsource help and ideas. In fact, I can safely say that most of the people I’ve connected with IRL (In Real Life) in 2010 in Toronto and Kenya were people I first “met” via Twitter.

So the value of Twitter is not in the tool or software. The value of Twitter, and other social media tools, is determined by the user and the level of engagement they pursue.

By the way, I had a peanut butter sandwich and orange juice for breakfast.

What say you?

By Karim Kanji