Marketing Pilgrim Published: “Report Highlights Need for Online Talent Now” plus 4 more

Report Highlights Need for Online Talent Now
Malvertising Impacts Billions of Ads in 2010
Boom or Bubble? Twitter Valued at 100x Revenue!
comScore Lists Top 10 Digital Media Trends of 2010
Ken and Barbie Get Social

Report Highlights Need for Online Talent Now

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 07:53 AM PST

In a young industry such as social media, defining talent and experience is a dicey proposition at best. The age of the space will vary greatly depending on who you speak with but the maturation has truly escalated in the past 5 years or so (feel free to debate that if you wish ).

So it's little surprise that the rapid expansion of the space has created a need for talent and experience both of which can be seen as being in short supply. That is unless you really believe that everyone who calls themselves a social media / digital marketing expert, guru, maven or ninja or whatever actually is one.

The Society of Digital Agencies has outlined this need for talent in their report the 2011 Digital Marketing Outlook. Check out the chart below.

Did you know that one of the most cost effective ways to either find the right digital marketing opportunity for you or to find that 'perfect fit' for your company's Internet marketing and social media talent needs is right here at Marketing Pilgrim.

List your openings for just $27 for a 30-day period with Marketing Pilgrim to reach the Internet marketing industry's influencers and, most importantly, the talent that is looking to work for you today.

LIST YOUR JOB OPENINGS WITH MARKETING PILGRIM TODAY!

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Malvertising Impacts Billions of Ads in 2010

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 06:59 AM PST

Malware has always been a real problem for the Internet space and now it is spreading further into the world on online advertising. For those keeping score, that's a bad thing.

According to a post from ClickZ

More than 10 billion online ad impressions served up in 2010 carried malware, according to recent research from Online Trust Alliance. The organization, dedicated to establishing best practices for ensuring data privacy and security online, argues that delivery of ads transferring malicious code could be prevented if ad networks and other ad third parties took care to know their business partners.

Excuse me while I chuckle at that last sentence. In this go-go Internet space taking care to know your business partners can slow down 'progress'. With many ad networks being sketchy from the get-go this is both a tall order and a bit too Utopian for this real world Internet. Money talks, so few people vet.

As a result the following chart may start to look all too familiar as we move forward.

No one ever said the online space is safe but with the constant need to expand and grow there are holes that are left and where there is opportunity for something bad to happen then it will be exploited. So what advertising forms are the culprits?

The organization estimates most of the malvertising served last year came in the form of display ads, and many of the ads emanated from outside the U.S. Based on aggregate data from ad serving firms, OTA reported in December that it confirmed nearly 19,000 incidents of malvertising last year occurring across 3,500 sites and 200 unique ad networks.

What's most frightening is the reality that users may not have to even click on ads to become infected. A post from ReadWriteWeb looked at this particular issue back in September

According to Chris Larsen, head of Blue Coat’s research lab, you don’t even need to actually click on the ads. Blue Coat documented one way this is done: a site can use JavaScript to call hidden iFrames which load PDFs containing code that exploits Adobe Reader vulnerabilities.

Yikes.

The numbers as a percentage of overall ads displayed make this seem like a non-issue but for those that have been caught the issue is real and it is likely to continue to grow.

Is there a remedy? Good old fashioned 'staying up to date' should stop most of it.

Here’s the good news: according to Larsen, most malvertising targets well known exploits. Keeping your operating systems and software patched is the best way to prevent damage from attacks.

Patch management is a notoriously labor intensive and thankless process, but as NSS Labs recently noted in a report it’s one of the most important steps IT can take to protect its users.

Moving forward, though, the online advertising industry better not just brush this one under the rug because of its current relatively low incidence rate. With all of the concerns about privacy in the online space the last thing that needs to be put in the mind of "Joe Internet User" is that the ad they are clicking on could trigger malware that will put them at risk. If that becomes a real concern then the effectiveness of online ads will diminish and there will some pretty disappointed folks who are banking on advertising to keep them in the black rather than seeing red.

Are you concerned about this? Does this impact how you will look at ad networks? Will you wait until it's an epidemic before it is real to you? Let us know.

Boom or Bubble? Twitter Valued at 100x Revenue!

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 06:00 AM PST

Hands-up if you’d like to sell your company for 100 times your projected earnings for 2011?

Sorry, it will…take a little…longer to…type this sentence…with just one hand.

On the back of a recent $200 million investment–and a reported $80m secondary market purchase–the Wall Street Journal is reporting that both Google and Facebook are sniffing around Twitter.

Both Google and Facebook have discussed buying Twitter in the past and have kept their lines of communication open, people familiar with the matter said. One of these people said companies including Facebook and Google have expressed “latent interest” in an acquisition.

When it raised the $200m in December, Twitter’s valuation was only $3.7 billion. Now it appears that Google and Facebook are kicking around valuations anywhere between $8 billion and $10 billion.

Twitter’s estimated revenue for 2010 was just $45 million and this year it is rumored have around $100 million in revenue.

10,000,000,000 ÷ 100,000,000 = a multiple not seen since the dot com heyday.

It’s no wonder the WSJ says Twitter is a “tech bubble barometer” – 100 times revenues sure looks like a bubble. Then again, Twitter is not going away anytime soon and this valuation is not based on this year’s revenue–or even the next 2 years–but the company’s future revenues. Remember, its ad platform has not yet opened up to the general public–which that in itself should see Twitter’s revenues hit the $500m range in a just a couple of years.

Still, 100x is a multiple that would surely ignite a mini-dot com boom (or bust).

comScore Lists Top 10 Digital Media Trends of 2010

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 03:01 PM PST

It’s time for the comScore, U.S. Digital Year in Review report 2010! I know you’ve been waiting breathlessly for this, preparing for the moment when you can put these marketing secrets into action and ramp up your sales 200%!

Well, here’s the real secret. There are no secrets. We’ve seen these trends coming right at us for the past year and then some. Still, a little validation is always helpful, so let’s see what made the list of the Top 10 Digital Media Trends of 2010.

E-commerce is back, but is morphing:

The report states that US e-commerce grew 10% to $142.5 billion. A big chunk of that went to online only sites such as Amazon, but many brick and mortar stores with an online component saw sales skyrocket this past holiday season.

Digital couponing comes alive:

This is what comScore calls the “morphing” part. Group buying and flash sales sites have made the art of the deal less of an art. Couponing is no longer just for the mom trying to make ends meet. Everyone wants a deal on everything and it’s driving sales like never before.

Facebook now leading the mindshare battle:

“Three out of every 10 internet sessions includes a Facebook visit, and Facebook accounts now accounts for 10% of all pageviews in the US.” It’s not going away any time soon, so you better learn to make it work.

Web-based email is waning:

The days where we were excited by the prospect of a free email address are over. Our society is on the move, so texting and social media updates — both of which can easily be handled with a phone — are the preferred means of communication, particularly among teens.

The Search battle gets bigger and wages on:

comScore says the search market is up 12%. Google gets more than 2 out of every 3 searches and Yahoo! is still coming on strong. With all search engines working to refine their results, eliminate spam and make responses more relevant, search is going to continue to climb.

Display ad growth continues, and more big brands join in:

Display is up 23%, says comScore, more than a trillion of those impressions coming at you from Facebook. We’re not just talking banner ads here. The big boys have found ways to make ads talk and interact with consumers in ways we’ve never seen before. We hit a record 4.9 trillion display impressions in 2010. What will 2011 bring?

Video adoption continues to climb, and online TV is now mainstream:
Video ad market takes shape, but still pales in comparison to TV:

We’ll combine these two and say three cheers for online video. It’s kind of the little engine that could, plugging along making small strides and slowly changing the way we view moving images. TV networks don’t have to worry about losing their sponsors to the web anytime soon, but we’ve definitely become more open about accepting ads on our favorite funny web shows.

Mobile market getting 'smarter’:
Android vs. iPhone battle heats up:

Here’s another pair of trends that you should be thinking about. 25% of all mobile phones are now smartphones and that number is growing fast. With the shift came the ability to market to a captive audience using video, music, downloads and interactive features. People not only understand what you mean when you say “apps,” but they’re scooping them up like pennies from heaven.

And it doesn’t matter if Android or iPhone wins the race, either way, it’s good news for marketers. There are people who have their phones tethered to their body 24/7 which means you can reach them with your message at exactly the right time and in the right place. (Thanks GPS!)

Summary

Looking at these trends as a whole you can see that they’re all about doing things faster and smarter. Why rearrange your schedule around your favorite TV shows when you can watch them online anytime you want. Need lunch in a hurry? Let Foursquare help you find a place nearby and get a digital coupon so you don’t pay full price.

Do you have a marketing plan that fits in with these trends? If not, it’s time to get to work.

You can download the whole U.S. Digital Year in Review Report when you click here.

Ken and Barbie Get Social

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 01:39 PM PST

The internet is all a twitter today about a brand new social media marketing push from toy manufacturer Mattel. The campaign is all about how Ken plans to woo Barbie back into his life by Valentine’s Day and it’s pretty brilliant.

The entire event revolves around a website where people can vote if Barbie should take Ken back. The simplistic website has huge buttons sending people to Ken and Barbies’ Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare page, there’s even a YouTube video where Ken uses Match.com to see if he and Barbie are compatible. Not enough? They’re also running a reality show on Hulu called The Genuine Ken and not coincidentally they’re about to release a new “Sweet Talking Ken Doll” who looks like a cross between Justin Bieber and the kids from Twilight.

Everything is so tongue-in-cheek, it’s obviously aimed more at adults than kids. Ken’s Twitter includes a mix of marketing messages:

Today’s goal: Try out the #NikeTrainingClub app that everybody is raving about. I’m always curious when fitness and technology meet.

And creepy Barbie stalker statements:

I want my doll’s heart back, and I need your help getting it!

Sprinkled throughout are references to Esquire Magazine, the Lakers, Match.com and the Super Bowl. And here’s a favorite:

Weekend Ken-fession: when I watched the ball drop on New Years, all I could think of was how much I missed @BarbieStyle.

Okay, is that dirty or is it just me?

Let’s look at the numbers. Ken’s Twitter has nearly 7,000 followers and 34,000 people liked his Facebook page. That’s a lot of people following and responding to an entity they know isn’t real. Why not? The fact that he’s a doll turns the whole thing into a giant role play game.

Barbie and Ken aren’t the first fictional characters to join the social network. @mmsgreen is the official Twitter of the Green M&M, Flo the annoying Progressive sales lady has her own Facebook page, and we’re all familiar with the Old Spice Man. What all of these accounts have in common is that they’re humorous and often pop culture related. They promote the brand without actually hawking the product and that’s why people like, follow and share them regularly.

A week ago, Ken Carson was a washed up, surfer doll without a future. Now, thanks to a social media push, he’s a hot commodity appearing in USA Today, The Toronto Sun and even on TV. Hey, Barbie! Maybe you should give this guy a second look.

Have you ever tried fictional social media on behalf of your brand? I’d like to hear about it.