2014 Top Ads

It is once again that time where the best commercials, ads, tweets, etc of the year are announced. 

Honestly, it is hard to pick just one of each so let’s see who some of the top dog media groups selected:

·         Entertainment Weekly selected Budweiser’s “Puppy Love” commercial as one of their top ten.

·         Ad Week selected Newcastle’s “If We Made It” ad which I have to admit was pretty brilliant.

·         AdAge selected “Awkward Family Moments” which promotes HBO Go.

The list goes on and on. So what are my favorites of 2014?

Definitely “Unsung Hero,” “Most Shocking Second a Day Video,” and the “F1Car Truck Jump.” These are just to name a few. I think ads whether print, online, television; really any type had a great year compared to 2013. Creativity in 2014 was high! I can only hope 2015 will be just as great.

So tell me, what are your favorite ads of 2014?

Taco Bell Goes Dark: Launches App

Taco Bell was very unique in their online advertising choices. They wiped out all the content across their social media pages and posted one simple message: “Customers can now order tacos, burritos and chalupas from the chain's new mobile app.”

First of all, their advertising choice definitely got the attention of their followers, customers, and fans. The social sites went dark, feature a single post with the hashtag "#onlyintheapp," which sends followers to the app. By going dark, Taco Bell is not going to be able to effectively communicate with fans through social media sites which is an interesting decision during the launch of this new app.  

Second, a fast food chain launching an app for ordering, saving favorite orders, locating nearby stores, and checking out with a credit card is pretty awesome. Stores like Pizza Hut and Dominos have these features on their apps, but not many fast food chains do. This will be interesting to watch as it unfolds to see how it gains in popularity and convenience for consumers, but also in which additional franchises will follow the trend.

Source: Adweek “Why Did Taco Bell Just Wipe Put It’s Social Media Accounts?

The Effects of Social Media on the Brain

I saw this video post titled “5 Crazy Ways Social Media is Changing Your Brain Right Now”  and was very intrigued. These scientists/researchers studied the effects of social media on the brain. The results are pretty interesting so I thought I would share it. Check out the video here and let me know your thoughts!

Enjoy!

Social Media Communication Affecting ‘Blind’ Clinical Trials

Finally, an article was posted this morning by the Wall Street Journal about social media communication compromising drug trials. Working at a cancer hospital, we have a number of clinical trials that are testing new therapies, drugs, and treatments. I have heard before from healthcare professionals that they worry about what information is being shared online about the trials. Even though the healthcare team explicitly explains the importance and rules of the study, patients can and sometimes do still compromise the research.  I think it is important that the FDA consider establishing social media communication policies for subjects in trials to follow. It is also vital that the FDA create guidelines for researchers to follow when they discover subjects in trials communicate with one another on social media in order to not compromise the studies.  I understand that patients need an outlet to communicate and learn more about their treatments; however, I feel that drug trials are trying to determine effective treatment options that can be used to save the lives of many. Additional regulations should be placed to ensure the accuracy of the trials. Anyway, enough of my rambling. It is a good post, long…but really important in that it brings to light an issue several researchers are experiencing. 

Happy Social Media Day!

One of my favorite sites, Mashable.com, created a quick 2 minute video to celebrate Social Media Day in which they provided statistics about social media research they recently conducted. It is definitely worth watching. I think the best part was when they asked what social media platform people first used and some of course responded with Myspace. Ahhh Myspace, I was a user of that site once, and then came along Facebook.  I also found it interesting that people were using between 2-5 different social media sites a week. I typically use around 7 a week so this seemed pretty accurate but that definitely drives home the points that we still don’t prefer to use one social media site for everything. Lastly, it mentioned Facebook fatigue which we all know I think is real. Either way, think back and try to remember your life before social media if you can and compare it now. I just did and it really made me realize just how much has changed. Happy Social Media Day everyone!

Video Link: How We Use Social Media, Illustrated-Mashable

Building a Community Through Social Media

Social media has made such a huge difference in the health and fitness world. Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram allow us to share our workouts with the world. Someone just posted an accomplishment, “I ran 1 mile and before I could not walk a mile.” Posts like this bring inspiration to the many that fall into this same category. With social media we are able to connect in a way we could not before. We can start a biking or running group on Facebook with bikers from Canada, USA, or Italy and report our miles to one another while keeping each other motivated. We can express how we may have hit an obstacle and how we got over that barrier. Social media allows us to share our triumphs and successes, rather it be completing 10 pull-ups or 100 push-ups. We can pin our favorite healthy recipes to Pinterest for those who need ideas on how to prepare lighter meals. Instagram, a short clip of a new exercise you learned. Social media has given us something so phenomenal, connecting people with the same fitness goals to help push each other across the finish line. We share our fitness stories, dreams, goals, and visions with the world through social media.

Author: Carlos Duncan, Certified Personal Trainer (CPT), Health and Fitness Specialist (HFS), and Certified Strengthening and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS)

Google+: Changes & What's To Come

This will be a short post today about an article I read titled “The Year Ahead: 5 Social Media Trends Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know.” At first if seemed pretty straight forward as to how technology continues to transform the modern entrepreneur yada yada; however, I loved point #2 on this list. It says Google+ is for real. I have been user of this site from the start and could never figure out why entrepreneurs were not more active so I was definitely excited with this point.  What I found most interesting was the suggestion that Google Authorship will begin to play a larger role in SEO. I plan to keep my eye on this and see how it goes for Google+. What are your thoughts on this? Do you think Google Authorship will create a big of an impact as the author is predicting?

Google+ has been in the headlines recently for its brand getting twice the engagement of tweets, how its fan engagement is getting closer to Facebooks, or my favorite, the narcissism stats (stats that show how many times your profile has been viewed as well as your photos). Love that feature! Google+ is definitely making some interesting changes to become more competitive with the other big social media players so perhaps the Google Authorship will produce positive effects. If you get bored anytime soon, research Google+ news releases. There are at least six different articles that will emerge from the past week discussing all of the changes Google+ is making to its site to increase user activity. 

Other than that the article mentioned a few key points but ones that most of us are aware of by now. It is still a good read and interesting so I suggest everyone checking it out. Until next time……

Neknomination: Social Media to Blame?

The big story this week is about a lethal drinking game called “Neknomination” which has gone viral. The rules of this game are simple: you film yourself downing an alcoholic drink (usually in large quantities) and then nominate a friend to outdo you. You must also post a video of this on social media. Currently, this game has killed at least five men under the age of 30.

The main question that seems to be the “hot button” is who is responsible? People are suggesting that sites being used to distribute this game, such as Facebook, should take ownership and recognize their role in this game. Facebook has of course already issued a statement saying they do not tolerate content that causes direct harm but also does not find certain behaviors against their rules. I am not sure what YouTube has decided to do yet. It appears that people are targeting Facebook and place blame on this social media giant more than others and are not consistent in their criticisms.

I am wondering this: If an individual is old enough to drink alcohol (21+), they are considered an adult. So is this adult not the one who should be responsible for deciding to play the game or not? Also (I am just looking at this from my point of view), I would NEVER post a video of myself drinking on a social media site. Sharing content like that would most likely damage any personal and professional opportunities I may have in the future. Once something goes online, it is always out there. Just because you delete it, doesn’t mean it’s deleted. We all know this by now….it’s called a digital footprint….. Am I the only thinking about that?

While I do think that the sites being used to distribute content about the game should address the issue, I don’t think they are directly responsible for people’s actions. However, to avoid any further bad PR drama, they might want to consider removing the videos. One can only hope that this game fizzles out quickly. 

Best/Worst Superbowl Commercials 2014

I honestly can’t believe I am writing this, but I think the commercials this year were a bigger let down then last year! Not only was the football game boring, but so were the commercials. 

I guess it makes it easier though for me to pick which advertisements were the best. Below are my top 5 favorites:

1. Budweiser Puppy Ad: This is my #1 of course because it has a puppy in it! We all know the most effective way to pull on the heartstrings of viewers is with images of puppies. Nothing I can say that’s negative because I adore puppies.  
2. Budweiser A Hero’s Welcome:  After Budweiser’s salute to the troops commercials last year, I honestly didn't think they could pull something off that well again. They proved me wrong big time. I think this was perfect and I wouldn't change a thing. My only question is, what do the other members of the military get when they come home? Ha-ha I bet they are all expecting a massive party now from Budweiser!  
3. Bud Light: OK when Arnold Schwarzenegger showed up in this commercial, everyone was stoked and cracking up! Plus the lead guy’s facial reactions in each situation throughout the ads were priceless.
4. Microsoft: This commercial was an immediate attention grabber with the voice that was used. Then images of how far we have come with technology and the positive ways technology can change lives by giving hope to the hopeless was the major selling point. However, the ending really brought it home. I was impressed to see this innovative advertising side of Microsoft.
5. Cheerios: After watching the response to their bi-racial couple advertisement last year, I was excited to see if Cheerios would scale back at all. Instead they continued with their same method which, I think, proved successful. People love that little girl! I do wish that they found a way to include their message “Love” with the vision of Cheerios a little more but overall, good commercial. 

I will say that of all the commercials, I was most disturbed by Nestle this year. The people who were watching the commercial/game with me all actually stopped talking and had frozen looks of disgust on their faces! I mean did Nestle really suggest a three-way on national TV? Also, the M&M commercial was very disappointing. I was so thrilled when I read that yellow was going to get his own commercial and be the star, without red this time. All I can say on that is, EPIC FAIL. The advertisement had him say one line, a line that didn't even represent his M&M character. LAME. Sadly, I think most of the commercials were just awful this year and I was very disappointed. 

What was new this year and worked for some of the companies (I say some, not all) was the use of a commercial followed by another commercial from the same company tactic. There were several instances of that which made it easier to hit viewers with the same advertising messages due to the repetition. 

What were your favorites/worst commercials?