Imitation Inspiration

Originality is overrated.

As a social media marketer and digital artist, I've often been instructed to "be creative," "think outside the box" and "try something new." In a world where everything seems to have already been said and done, originality is the elusive Road Runner that we strive so hard to catch.

Helmut Krone, an art director considered to be the pioneer of modern advertising, once said:

I asked one of our young writers recently, which was more important: doing your own thing or making the ad as good as it can be? The answer was "Doing my own thing." I disagree violently with that. I'd like to pose a new idea for our age: "Until you've got a better answer, you copy." (Passage taken from "Hey Whipple, Squeeze This. A Guide to Create Advertising" by Luke Sullivan)

Oftentimes, people are so consumed with discovering the next big thing that they forget about the tons of great resources already available at their fingertips. Turn on the TV. Browse the net. Pick up a magazine.

I used to think I was a terrible artist because my works consist mainly of fan art, but even the most "original" art is inspired by something somehow; an event, a person, an object. There are several degrees to inspiration (some more direct than others), but as long as you put your own twist to it, there is nothing to be ashamed of. I believe the same principle applies to good advertising and social media.

I do, however, want to draw the distinction between copying outright and getting inspiration. Think of it this way:

COPYING OUTRIGHT = REPOST
GETTING INSPIRATION = MEME

Memes, to me, are the perfect example of "copying someone" the right (and legal) way. After all, a meme is essentially taking an idea and customizing it to make it your own. And guess what? People love them!

In a nutshell:
- Originality is overrated
- Copying is okay, but don't be a repost. Be a meme.

Til then,
Mae

Visual.ly: Browse & Create Infographics

If you're a social media fanatic like me, then no doubt you've noticed the recent Infographic craze. Everywhere you look -- news sites, blogs, viral sharing sites like 9GAG or Pinterest -- everyone seems to be hopping onto the Infographic bandwagon.

I myself have joined the craze. As a digital project manager, one of my jobs is to regularly update Facebook fan pages and Twitter feeds, and with this comes the responsibility of searching for fun, engaging yet useful content. This is where Infographics come into play. No only do they brighten up an otherwise bland-looking and text-filled Facebook wall, fans are also more likely to click a link or comment when there a visual in place.

My favorite place to hunt for Infographics? Visual.ly

Visual.ly offers a great selection of Infographics to learn and choose from. The thing I love about it is that anyone can upload their own Infographic onto the site for free -- it's Infographics by regular people like you, about topics that regular people like you care about. Here are some cute examples:

Laundry Symbols Explained
The Coolest Barcode Scanners in Movies
Top Migrant Destinations

Visual.ly also houses a free Infographic-generator app, which currently offers 3 templates: (1) Life of a Hashtag, (2) The Facebook Social Life, and my personal favorite (3) The Twitter Account Showdown! Just enter your data into select fields (example: your Twitter handle or Facebook page) and it creates the Infographic for you!

Just for fun, I've decided to do a showdown between myself and my good friend Kiks (check out her portfolio here)!

 

Give it a shot! It's fun, free and informational! Reminds me of why I got into social media in the first place!

Til then,
Mae

Infographic: American Idol Social Media Showdown

Another season of American Idol has come and gone and surprise! The winner is Phillip Phillips! Yes, American Idol has added yet another WGWG (that's "white guy with guitar" for you) to their growing list of WGWG winners.

From L-R: David Cook, Kris Allen, Lee Dewyze, Scotty McCreery and the newly crowned Phillip Phillips

I'll be honest, I stopped watching AI the moment Taylor Hicks took crown in Season 5. Such a letdown, especially following the amazingly talented, beautiful and down-to-earth Season 4 victor, Carrie Underwood. Still, I kept with the times, reading the news and occasionally chancing upon it on TV.

It was one of these "occasional chances" that made me decide to watch AI again. It was top 8 or 9ish by then and I heard Jessica Sanchez sing. Holy smokes, I thought. This is it. She wasn't perfect. Her renditions of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" were okay at best (Steve Tyler was being nice). Her stage presence needed work, unlike Joshua, Skylar and Phillip, who were naturals. But she had raw talent, she was young, passionate and more importantly she was marketable.

Online, the signs pointed to her victory (let's forget the whole "Saved" debacle, which was totally staged anyway). Check out this infographic I made summarizing Jessica and Phillip's respective social media profiles before the finale:

It's clear that Jessica has a larger, or at least more socially active, following. So why did Phillips win?

It's a simple answer that many businesses tend to overlook. As important as social media is, it does not necessarily represent offline behaviour. First, a handful of Jessica's fans are likely non-Americans. Second, just because someone shares his or her opinion online, doesn't mean it will translate to concrete actions.

I wish I didn't have to say I was disappointed with the results. After all, Phillip Phillips is a very talented man in his own right (and hot to boot). Still, with AI's ratings steadily dropping since Season 6, a fresh new winner might have been just the boost it needed.

Til then,
Mae

Facebook, Marriage and Organ Donors

First things first: Congratulations to Mark Zuckerberg on his wedding with long-time girlfriend Priscilla Chan! For those who haven't heard, the couple tied to knot in a simple surprise ceremony on May 19, 2012.

Congratulations to the happy couple!

Priscilla Chan, who just earned her medical degree at the University of California last week, has no doubt been a inspiration to the world's youngest self-made billionaire; the most recent example being Facebook's decision to incorporate the new Organ Donor feature in Timeline.

"Starting today, you can add that you're an organ donor to your timeline, and share your story about when, where or why you decided to become a donor... (Facebook) can be a big part of helping solve the crisis out there."—Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, May 1, 2012

 

Since the announcement, tens of thousands of users have already signed up to be organ donors. Finally, an online act that can actually potentially make a difference, as opposed to meaningless (and often unrelated) Facebook memes! An act that not only announces your support, but gives you the opportunity to do something about it if and when the need arises.

What do you think? Will you sign up to be an organ donor*? 
*Note: this feature is not yet available in Canada

xoxo
Mae

Related links
Organ donation: Facebook's priceless offering
Mark Zuckerberg wife: Priscilla Chan Profile

Crappy Facebook Ads

Today I want to talk about crappy Facebook ads and tips on how to improve them.

Wrong-sized / Text-filled / Blurry Images

With over 50,000,000 singles ready to mingle, not one could provide a decent-sized photo for this ad. Ad images are 110 px wide by 80 px tall. If your image is square or vertical, Facebook will resize it and you end up with an ugly empty space that shows you're too lazy to crop or resize your image.

 

You know what's hell? Trying to read the tiny words in this tiny wrong-sized image. Since the specs are already so small, don't choose images with so much text in them.

 

Is that supposed to be a home or the cliff where Scar killed Mufasa?

Tip: Choose clear, recognizable images with little or no text and correct dimensions. Your image should entice people to click the ad, not to squint or give them headaches. 


Irrelevant Image or Copy

Whoever chose this image must have been drunk with Molson M. What does it have to do with the ad? If you drink beer you'll become a dancer?

The "not for kids" angle might work on TV where there's time to build up the humor and deliver the punch line. However, it just seems contrived in a Facebook ad. How does announcing "Negotiating is NOT for kids!" convince us that your advice is worth listening to? Plus, the folks at Karrass have obviously never seen kids throw tantrums in the supermarket.

Tip: Your image and copy should compliment each other. Copy should be convincing, straight to the point and clearly state how the product or service can benefit the consumer.


Redundant Redundancy

The brand name makes up the entire title, which is already in the web address. The web address is reiterated in the copy because apparently we're blind and missed it. It's repeated yet again in the image, in case we still haven't figured it out.

 

I think this one is intentional though! haha

Tip: You have 25 and 135 characters max for your title and body, respectively. Don't waste it! Unlike Google, people don't go to Facebook to search, so spewing out information is not enough. People go on Facebook to socialize or to be entertained, so use catchy adjectives to grab their attention.

Vague / No call-to-action

How do I participate? Do I answer a survey? Do I join a contest? Why do I have to be a 45-year-old male?

What?

Tip: Vague copy may entice people to learn more, but since Facebook ads are pay-per-click, you pay every time someone clicks your ad. Therefore, you want quality clicks, not just "What does this mean" clicks. Hold off enough information so people will want to learn more, but provide enough so they know what they're getting into. 


Bad Targeting

This is an actual ad that appeared on my Facebook page. If done properly, Facebook ads are targeted to your specific demographic and interests. I suppose I'm in the correct location and age range, but this has nothing to do with my interests. I don't even drink!

Tip: Some ads can get away with general demographic or location targeting (ex. restaurants, holidays, movies) but some need to be targeted more specifically (ex. jobs, seminars, niche products). The more relevant your targeting is, the higher the chance you'll find a potential customer.


Too Much Exposure

I click Facebook ads for 2 reasons: (1) I'm actually interested or (2) they appear so many times that I want to punish the advertiser by literally making them pay. Other people probably aren't as mean as me, but it never hurts not to annoy potential customers.

Tip: Overexposure usually means your ad has been running too long or your budget is too big. Since Facebook ads are pay-per-click, a higher budget generally means your ads will run more often. If you have a small target market and a large budget, Facebook will expose your ad to the same people multiple times simply to exhaust the money.


Long story short, Facebook ads may seem cheap and risk-free, but can be costly if done incorrectly. So do it right and if you have questions, feel free to comment below!

Til then,
Mae

Related links:
Facebook Ads Best Practices