THOUGHT (aka Centric's Blog)

Well, more accurately, David Rumsey Maps in Second Life is in MIT Technology Review, but we do get a nice mention.

Thanks again, David, for having the vision to let us experiment in this emerging medium. I can’t wait for the event on the 6th–and to unveil the next additions to this space!

http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/20357/

We have an accounts person who is fond of the phrase, "Peeling back the onion layers." As in, "We have to get in, peel back the onion layers, and really understand what this client is about."

It’s funny, because when I thought about it, that’s really a terrible metaphor. Peeling back the onion layers reveals . . . nothing but more onion. There’s no surprise inside.

Maybe a better metaphor for brand and message development is "cracking the coconut." As in, you have to bore through a husk and a hard outer shell to reveal something completely unexpected.

Just the random thought for the day.

This is how it goes. As soon as I say, "I’m going to cut down on the speaking schedule this year, so I can concentrate more on business processes," opportunities start popping up.

First, I’ll be appearing at The Marketing Forum again this year. Here’s the topic:

Lessons Learned from Social Media Marketing: Where it Works, What it’s Good For, and How to Measure ROI

Social media now drives as much traffic to sites as Google does—so if you spend on search, you should probably be investing in social media marketing. But where? There are dozens of venues to explore, and many different tactics to choose from. How is it best used? And how do you measure the results against traditional media? In this session, we’ll explore:

• Learnings from case studies from companies that include Warner Brothers, HP, and Freestyle
• Emerging best practices in the social media space
• How to decide when social media is right for your marketing mix—and which venues you should target
• Best ways of measuring returns, from CPM to ROE (return on experience)

 Second, I’ll be giving a similar presentation to the Internet Strategy Forum here in Los Angeles:

Virtual Reality Check: Where Do We Go From Here?

Last year, Second Life came to the forefront of social virtual worlds with explosive growth and entries by high-profile brands. Now, growth has slowed, and brands as a whole have struggled to find their place. At the same time, 2D and 2.5D worlds for teens are booming, MMOs are hot, and there are new, open-source opportunities on the horizon for 3D worlds. What have we learned from this—and what does it mean for the future? In this session, we’ll examine:

• What worked, and what didn’t, in 2D and 3D virtual worlds
• What the landscape looks like right now
• Where the virtual world roadmap might take us in the next 12 months
• Practical strategies for deciding what worlds—if any—are right for you
• Results that you might expect—and how to measure them

If you’d like to have a version of either presentation given at your own company or organization, let us know, and we’ll see how we can set it up!

Today, it’s simpler than ever to get into the social media game.

Pick up a free Wordpress install, use crowdsourcing to find a great template designer, install some widgets to bring in your Twitter feed, and set up Flickr and YouTube accounts so you can bring in your photos and videos, and voila! You have a super professional-looking publishing platform with a complete content management system, ready to show virtually any kind of media you’d like.

Something like this, in the early days of the ‘tubes, might have easily been a seven-figure site. Today, I’ve seen people pull these sites together for three figures, including outsourcing of design and template implementation.

Pretty amazing, huh?

And the ease of getting into social media is great. For corporations big and small, it’s one of the best ways to increase your search engine cred. For individuals, it’s a stunning way to get your voice heard (or your photos seen, or your videos watched . . . but you see where I’m going.) There’s nothing wrong with having more people online with greater capabilities than they’ve ever had before.

But.

(You knew there was a but, didn’t you?)

Maybe I can provide some cautions for companies and individuals rushing down this road. Advice that will make your site stronger, more distinctive, more likely to get attention. So, without further ado, consider these three pitfalls as you design your social media presence:

1. The pitfall of design-sameness. It’s funny. Yes, good design is more accessible than ever. We’ve managed to kill most of the worst design abuses of early websites. We’ve found nice, clean ways to present information effectively and provide easy-to-use navigation. But when you see the same simple, rounded-tab-with-glass-effects design fronting the simple-and-easy-Flash piece on eleven hundred websites, it gets a little tired. If you’re in a business where you need to stand out from your competition, you may want to push your designer beyond these Web 2.0 tropes. And, when you get right down to it, is there any business where you don’t need to stand out?

2. The pitfall of info-blasting. You have a 4-column layout with 16 navigation buttons, 10 of your most recent posts, top comments and commenters, Twitter badges from 5 friends, a calendar highlighting the dates of your last posts, a sidebar full of scrolling Flickr images, and "post this to" badges from 8 different social news sites. A simple question: is this really enhancing your visitors’ experience? Does it communicate, at a glance, who you are, why you are different, or what you have to say? Or did you do this because there was a good-looking 4-column Wordpress theme readily available? Stand back and ask yourself: "What is the minimum I really need to say?" Because then it will really stand out.

3. The pitfall of site spread. It’s not enough to have a corporate site. You have to have a blog site. And a separate blog site for your development team. And blogs from key executives. Oh, yeah, and a captive social network. And a microsite for your e-newsletter. And a microsite for a specific product. And another. And a third microsite that has grown into a site of its own, thanks to input from the product manager. The problem is, now you have to manage all these sites. And figure out where they fit in to your brand heirarchy. Do yourself a favor and ask three questions before you launch a new site: (1) Can you manage it? (2) Does it do anything that can’t be incorporated into your main presence? (3) Do you really think your audience will be excited about it? If the answer to to any of these questions is "no," don’t launch the site. 

And again, I’m really excited that producing versatile, well-designed sites is so easy. But sometimes it’s best to sit back, relax, and think about it a bit. Think about how to be different. Think about what your single key message is. Think about what site design and functionality will truly support that message.

And then go do something truly stunning.

While we’re putting the finishing touches on the Rumsey Maps islands in Second Life, we’ve opened them to residents. And, so far, the first impressions have been positive:

New World Notes

Not Possible In Real Life

Ambling in Second Life

And the photos have been spectacular:

Krystine Qinan’s Set

Bettina Tizzy’s Set

Aaron Kukulcan’s Set

The official launch happens on March 6. Expect a press release with full details shortly.

In the Web 1.0 era, we produced websites for people we’d never met, and that was groundbreaking. Today, we’re hiring people we’ve never met, and it’s worth mentioning in the NY Post:

http://www.nypost.com/seven/02042008/jobs/sight_unseen_289356.htm

On a side note: since then, I’ve met Nathan, and promoted him to Associate Creative Director.