The Internet and its social networks have become stereotyped as an acerbic environment where kindness is not welcome, especially in platforms where relative anonymity can be attained. However, there have been recent pushes to create a positive ecosystem online. And failing that, to harness the prevailing anger and focus it in directions that may eventually prove socially productive.
Mashable: Dove’s Twitter Oscars program attempts to reverse damage of negative tweets
As a part of a campaign called #SpeakBeautiful to boost self esteem on Twitter, the social network and Dove have created an inspiring video that will air on Sunday night during the Academy Awards pre-show. The concept is based on a Twitter study showing that four out of every five negative tweets posted on the site about beauty and body image are women putting themselves down. Similar to Coke’s Super Bowl advertisement, Dove and Twitter are attempting to see what would happen if another Twitter account intercepted negative tweets and helped turn the messages into positive ones.
Tech Crunch: Facebook patents advertisements to influential users
Influential voices have a huge impact on the behaviors of their followers, which can cause ripple effects throughout the rest of a social network. In efforts to harness this, marketers are constantly searching for ways to target these users and get their messages in front of them. Facebook has patented a method that directly measures influence by determining not just who has the most followers, but whose followers re-share the most content. Not only that, but the method also includes ways to market directly to these users at a premium, which will prove lucrative not just for Facebook, but brands as well.
WebProNews: Google Image searches reveal a new Marlboro mascot thanks to John Oliver
If you search for “Marlboro Mascot’ right now in Google, the first result you’ll see is a cartoon diseased lung smoking a cigarette. That’s Jeff, and according to HBO’s John Oliver, he should be the new Marlboro mascot. Oliver spent Sunday night’s episode of Last Week Tonight skewering Marlboro, along with various other players in the big tobacco game. At the end, he asked viewers to help promote a new Marlboro Man of sorts – a giant, pink, diseased lung with a cowboy hat.
DigiDay: New York Times going all-in on Instagram
Over the past few weeks, the Times started new Instagram accounts for its video team, sports desk, marketing department and events teams. Those four joined existing Times accounts for food, travel, fashion and T Magazine content. That makes eight active Times Instagram accounts today, with plans to launch a primary @NYTimes account in the next month or two.
MediaPost: Word-of-mouth is affected by ads
In a recent study, the Word of Mouth Marketing Association has determined that the most powerful advertising is that which stimulates sharing and conversation, both online and offline. This may seem obvious to some, as a majority of conversations can start off with, “did you see…” or entail a quote from a humorous ad. However, the study takes it a step further, stating that consumer conversations actually increase the sales impact of advertising by 15% and account for an average 13% of consumer sales overall.
