Maybe it’s because USA just won (by an amazing goal at the very end of the second half), but I’ve been all over the World Cup this past week. From New Zealand’s amazing tie with Italy to USA winning Group C, you just can’t beat that.
Nike got tons of coverage and attention for creating the most viral video ever on YouTube (if by some chance you still haven’t seen it – check it out here), but I’m also loving the digital installation that they’ve created in South Africa.
Basically, Nike has created a huge LED display in Johannesburg, and Chalkbot style, is letting fans from around the world use social networks like Facebook to send messages for potential posting.
You can tweet your message to #NikeFuture for a chance for your message to be on of the 100/night that are broadcasted across the display. Go for it. And go #USA!
At last night’s Feast on Good Event, hosted at the very cool MEET at the Apartment, I had the opportunity to listen to a collection of great speakers address the concept of innovative social change through the lens of digital.
During the beautiful presentation by Nathan, of Crush + Lovely, he challenged the audience to imagine an internet that was personalized just for you. Does it look similar to the one now? What would you change? He challenged us to move away from the standard cheers of big, fast and open and think about an internet that is instead small, slow and closed. Small in a way that is highly personal, slow as in thoughtful and meaningful, and closed in a way that enables more value-driven interactions that challenge the traditional social graph.
Fitting nicely within this concept, although maybe a bit differently than he originally intended, is one of the platforms presented during these talks:
Catchafire, is an organization that is working to enhance (and save) the volunteer experience by helping non-profits scope much-needed work and access skilled volunteers. By charging non-profits a small fee to participate, Catchafire slows down the process and helps these groups think about what will truly be valuable. Rachael, the founder of Catchafire, spent her talk discussing the hidden dangers of “free” for non-profits. Free stuff, free bodies, free services – these things often have unintended costs (staff time for management, organization, maintenance of Free) and can distract non-profits from their primary goals and needs. Using a process that is a bit more tailored, a bit more methodical, Catchafire is able to help non-profits connect with a tailored group of volunteers who can serve specific purposes.
In a similar vein, by using LinkedIn profiles, the organization easily identifies volunteers’ skill sets and offers up personally tailored opportunities. This makes the volunteer experience more meaningful, as volunteers are doing projects that they find interesting and that fit their skills. This thoughtful approach ensures a more positive volunteer experience – hopefully encouraging more participation in the future.
The platform interrupts typical behavior (both on the volunteer and non-profit side), provides personalized content, and fosters off-line connection. I know that I, for one, am looking forward to volunteering through them.
Today, Youth Research Partners shared this great “Fanta in Kenya” case study that talks to the value that comes from engaging target audiences in the marketing process, creating experiences that tap into existing passion points, and building content that lives well beyond the dollars that are spent.
Fanta and Teenwise Media Limited developed an annual series of regional dancing and singing contests throughout Kenyan high schools, culminating in a national competition/awards ceremony, as a way to expand their brand from “an exclusive kids drink into a vibrant young adult beverage”.
The events allow the brand to engage with young Kenyans in an authentic way that creates an enormous amount of social currency. Regional activities are planned by the students empowering them to take ownership while participants form groups and practice all year long for a shot at stardom.
They talk about this program as one that builds “permission assets” which I thought was interesting- the idea of investing dollars not behind an ad campaign that will disappear in a couple of months, but in building real ambassadors and good will that acts as powerful social currency that goes well beyond the time when the money runs out.
In a move that makes the professional networking site LinkedIn a bit more comparable to Facebook and Twitter, the site recently added a new feature that allows individuals to opt-in to “follow” companies.
Followers have the ability to customize the content they receive from companies – opting to get notifications about staffing changes, new job opportunities and company profile updates, and selecting how frequently these updates arrive. Additionally, when I opted in to follow MWW Group’s page, I received an email alerting me about some of the most popular companies on LinkedIn, with prompts to follow.
While this has some implications in terms of ease of use for job seekers, former employees, partners and stakeholders looking for a continuous stream of company information, I still think company profiles have a far way to go to reach their full potential. Some other features I’d like to see:
Ability to customize company pages to include blog feed, twitter stream, photos and videos.
A list of affiliated groups and/or top groups in which current employees participate
An alert feature, that would allow companies to quickly and easily post new job openings or share big news (awards, mergers, earnings, etc).
What do you think? Are there other features you’d like to see on LinkedIn company pages?
On Friday I had the tremendous opportunity to attend the PSFK Conference here in New York. While I only made it to the afternoon sessions, I was simply blown away by the creativity, innovation and excitement coming from this year’s presentations. The talks that I most responded to fell within the heading of “Changemaking” and challenged us to think beyond our current definition of progress, to challenge the openness of government, to push for simple solutions, and to re-think the way art and digital collide. A couple of themes from these talks included:
Small is the new big: From No Impact Man’s lessons from taking a year to step off the grid and appreciate the little things (community, togetherness, diaper duty), to John Dimatos sharing simple digital solutions that can significantly expedite disaster relief for Unicef, it is clear that the economy and the environment are both creating a greater need for simplicity in everything we do.
The innovation being driven by that necessity is exciting, and there is a lesson to be learned for brands as well. Often times stripping down products, programs and services to their essentials can lead to better experiences, enhanced offerings and more creative thinking.
DIWO (Do It With Others) is the new DIY: This phrase, coined during Zach Lieberman’s inspiring talk about art and technology, spoke to the recurring theme of collaboration and community (a theme that was reinforced by the collective energy of the PSFK community).
By outlining the changes implemented in just the past year to new York State Senate web site, Andew Hoppin made a strong case for a more direct, more participatory government, enabled and empowered via social media. Taking a page from the White House, the NY Senate is providing a way for Senators to have direct contact with the people they represent, and gives constituents a louder voice through social network integration, commenting, rating and response all within nysenate.gov.
And I’ll leave you with this video – one of my favorites from Zach Lieberman that demonstrates the power that comes with creating amazing, truly extraordinary experiences. His demos had everyone open-mouthed. You can see more at http://openframewords.cc. Enjoy.
For more videos from the conference, check out PSFK here. To stay in the loop with PSFK if you’re not already, follow them on Twitter, or subscribe via RSS.
