Tumble On Over to Tumblr and Score!

Tumbling Pandas by Alan Wolf, CC BY

Two years ago, in February 2012, Bloomberg reported that some retailers had abandoned Facebook because ROI wasn’t there. Since then, users have been flocking to visual social media like Tumblr. 

What's Tumblr?

A so-called microblogging platform, Tumblr lets users post content to a short-form site that’s rich with short posts, videos, links, and photos.

Purchased by Yahoo in May 2013 for $1.1 billion, Tumblr may not be Facebook yet, but it might be the future. The company isn’t new—it launched in April 2007—but as of January 26, 2014, this little powerhouse had some amazing stats. 

Stats

On February 19, Tumblr had 45.1 million users and more than 17 billion total posts. On July 21, 2013, Tumblr had 199.1 million monthly visitors and on January 26, 2014  74.7 billion posts.

Who Goes To Tumblr?

Popular with teens and college-age user segments, 50 percent of tumblr’s visitor base is under the age of 25. Moreover, teenagers age 12-17 are about twice as likely as the average Internet user to visit Tumblr, while 18- to 24-year-olds are nearly 2.5x as likely. Staying in touch with Generations Y and  Z, in October 2011, the Obama campaign launched http://barackobama.tumblr.com (Note: This link format is how you find folks on Tumblr). 

Insights

Writing for 360 Digital connections, Matt Wurst suggests that Tumblr may be the answer to excessive options marred by short attention spans. “No one wants to sit through 1,000-word blog posts .. because words alone no longer tell the story.” Wurst calls Tumblr “a cross between a blog, a Twiter feed, and a Facebook profile.” Still not convinced?

Well, maybe if it’s good enough for the New Yorker, it’s good enough for you. Check it out here. 

Sources:

1. http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/tumblr-user-stats-fact/#.UzNEVK0eIkw January 26, 2014

2. http://www.searchenginepeople.com/blog/20-tumblr-stats-marketers-cant-ignore.html  October 21, 2013, Bernadette Coleman

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Leftovers To Feed the Content Beast

1. Turn an ebook into a series of blog posts, or a series of blog posts into an ebook.

2. When you host a webinar, create a ride-along transcript so content “snackers” can scan the information. Later, turn the transcript into a slideshow.

3.  Capture a real-time tweet chat and republish it as a crowd-sourced blog post.

4. Pull sound bytes out of a long-form report or white paper and use them as tweets and Facebook updates.

5. Give quotes a new life as graphics; use them on visual platforms like Facebook and Pinterest.

6. Always read blog comments; they serve as both fodder and inspiration for tweets and short blog posts.

7. Use Evernote to snatch tidbits from all over the web; use liberally.

8. To keep readers abreast of change, revisit last year's article as the basis for a retrospective (e.g., "That Was Then, This Is Now.")

9. Rely on white papers for blog wraps like this one. (And thank you, Curata, for your ebook, “How To Feed the Content Beast.” You inspired me.)

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The Evolution of Twitter and Me

Common wisdom has it that Twitter growth is sliding. Maybe. But, in some unexpected ways, I find myself more attached to Twitter than ever.

You see, my use of Twitter has evolved from promotional outreach to community reach. Here's what I mean:

1. I really don't want to build a huge Twitter list. I want a select list and I'm fanatical about dividing my Twitter followers (from all three accounts) into specific categories. Admittedly, sometimes I'm not sure why I do this so religiously. I do have a feeling that some day I'll be glad I did; maybe it's the database marketer in me.

2. Twitter is a community. For instance, I can't watch the nightly news without turning on the Twitter account where my progressive friends hang out. I not only learn a great deal about what's going on, I can exchange thoughts with like-minded friends.

3. Twitter is a secondary key news source. If anything significant (or even of personal interest to me) happens nationwide or globally, I follow the hashtag. That's where I get the most current news and the opinion.

4 Generally speaking, hashtags are a vital search method for me -- less commonly used, perhaps, but equal to Google. Likewise, I don't tweet without hashtags.

5 Twitter is my search engine of choice for matters close to my heart: politics, marketing, writing, etc. Here's where the experts I know and respect hang out.

So, yes. I've noticed some key differences in my Twitter use lately. Anyone else?

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Short-Form Content Gets the Look

Marketers today need content and plenty of it. Ebooks and whitepapers make great giveaways, but, increasingly, users demand their info in bite-size chunks. Enter short-form content.

By definition, short-form content is created quickly and consumed even faster. Widely used examples include tweets, Facebook and/or LinkedIn status updates, Instagram photos, and even truncated blog posts and articles.

Josh Schwartz, a data scientist at  traffic analysis firm Chartbeat, took a look at how people scroll through Slate articles. His data shows that readers can’t stay focused. "When people land on a story, they very rarely make it all the way down the page. A lot of people don’t even make it halfway."

Popular apps and software like the following confirm that users are hungry for short and sweet.

• Vine, a mobile app that features seven-second video clips. Example: Airbnb.
• Tapestry, an app that employs digital index cards by which users tell a "short story," one card at a time. Example: Patch.
• Infographics that turn complex textual information into a picture. Example: 10 Ways To Use Infographics.
• Pinterest, a collection of photos gathered from around the web to tell a particular story. Example: Amnesty International.
• Flipboard, software used to "build" your own magazine on any subject, simply by aggregating web content. Example: Evernote.
• Snapguide, an app that lets users create and share concise step-by-step "how-to" guides. Example: School of Architecture, Kingston University London.
• Snapchat, a mobile photo and video sharing service developed by Stanford University students. Talk about short! Messages posted to Snapchat self-destruct after they're viewed. (P.S. Snapchat is H-O-T, having recently turned down a $3 billion buy offer from Facebook.) Also consider SnapChat Stories, eager to grow in ever smaller ways with  VC money  waiting in the wings. Example: Sorry, no examples are available; they've all self-destructed.

There's one more short-form app I'm compelled to add because it's so futuristic. This app -- Summly  -- generates short content for users automatically. Developed by a 17-year-old Brit and recently sold to Yahoo for a rumored $30 million, Summly delivers machine-generated news summaries to mobile users. 

Forbes -- and Marketers -- Still Love Direct Mail. Here's Why.

Forbes isn't telling us anything we don't already know: Especially for B2B sales, when it comes to outbound marketing [aka prospecting] direct mail gets attention better than anything else (lots better).

In Forbes' article, writer Lois Geller talks primarily about the success of print catalogues, but the comments -- many from marketers themselves -- tell the larger story of why direct mail works so well.

"With the mountain of social media and other on-line marketing and advertising ‘noise’, getting something delivered right to you increases the chance it will be seen."
-- Terri L. Maurer

"Consumers appreciate direct mail’s tangibility, flexibility and once-a-day pace."
--Prospects Influential

"The fact that direct mail is rarely used in some segments, makes it effective. We tried a direct mail piece to a tech audience that was nearly 100% online in communication. This was a market segment that was on twitter all day long talking about topics and technology. We decided to measure success just like we did with our online investments – clicks to the website and ultimately form completions and leads for sales. The results from the direct mail piece beat many of our online offers at a similar price point. No, direct mail isn’t dead at all. Smart B2B marketers will use it in a precise and targeted fashion to drive similar results t online."
-- Bryan Semple

"As a direct mail copywriter for over 30 years, I’m glad to see someone touting the non-dying nature of direct mail. Here’s hoping we see renewed life in the beautiful — and highly effective — direct mail packages from the 80′s. Real writing and actual graphic design — what a concept! I love catalogs, but I miss clever headlines on outer envelopes, crisply written four-page letters and highly engaging four-color foldout brochures. It’s a bygone era that businesses ought to rethink and resurrect. I hope they do. I’m ready to write!"
-- Ken Schnieder

See you around the mailbox.

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3D Printing for the Rest of Us

I've been hearing about 3D printing -- alternatively, called additive manufacturing -- but only vaguely understood the capabilities. Essentially, 3D printing makes three dimensional objects from a digital model. A little research turned up a gazillion uses.

What Can You Do With 3D Printing?
Products of 3D printing include footwear, dental and medical devices, replacement kidneys, guns, cars, prosthetics, bones, desserts (yes, you know.. like sweet things you eat after dinner!), works of art, jewelry, clothes, musical instruments, industrial replacements parts, and much more.

Researcher James Craddock attended the two-day 3D Printshow in Paris in late November. He's convinced. "I have no doubt it is going to change the world," he says. "The real revolutionary factor is industrial use."

BusinessNewsDaily contributor Elizabeth Palermo says 3D printing will change small business five ways: empower small scale production, create new price point opportunities, facilitate product development, enable prototyping, and make experimentation affordable.

For photos and see-it-yourself inspiration check out this HuffPost story from November 15.

What's Ahead?
Jeremiah Owyang says, "Just as many people who have published blogs, videos, and pictures have become media companies, we’re now seeing people make physical things and personally become like traditional companies." Owyang suggests 5 ways companies can leverage/get involved in 3D printing now: financial backing, manufacturing, supplying, hosting an online marketplace of designers, printers, products and service providers, or becoming an online service provider.

Want to Get Involved?
Currently, 383 3D Printing Meetup Groups get together in the U.S. If you want to learn more about 3D printing or get involved, check it out.

More Examples for Enthusiasts
Shapeways is a Dutch-founded, New York-based 3D printing marketplace and service company that offers do-it-yourselfers a creative bonanza. Users upload design files, and Shapeways prints the objects for them or others. Users can have objects printed from a variety of materials, including food-safe ceramics. As of June 2012, Shapeways had printed and sold more than one million user-created objects.This backgrounder has details.

Tim Zaman, a Dutch researcher, has apparently recreated detailed paintings with a 3D duplication technique that he has designed. The printer uses images from real paintings to reproduce an exact replica of a painting in every detail, it even produces raised brush strokes. Zaman used an Oce printer that can reproduce large paintings at a resolution of 600ppi (600 pixels per inch). The printer moves back and forth to create textured layers. Don’t expect to recreate famous paintings any time soon, though; your the printer needs the original painting to make a replica.

Cornell University faculty and librarians developed The Kinematic Models for Design Digital Library (K-MODDL), which is an open access, multimedia resource for learning and teaching about kinematics - the geometry of pure motion - and the history and theory of machines.

Need a 3D printer at home? The Cube®, voted MAKE magazine’s “easiest to use” and “most reliable” 3D printer, gets you going straight out of the box. "

"The only 3D printer certified for safe at-home use by adults and children … just plug it in and start, says the description." Reminiscent of Apple's "candy Mac" line of computers, this little Wifi monster comes in five body colors, along with 25 free 3D design files. $1,299.

PRINT!

2014 Is the Year of the Voice

Is anybody here using Siri or Android voice-recognition capability to text? You’re in good company: Voice activated apps and activities have exploded. Here are some more examples:

Google glass lets wearers take photos and get digital directions with voice commands. Microsoft also is testing eyewear that will do the same.

Google Chome’s has a new voice activated search capability? As Google puts it, “If you can say it, you can search for it” 

Meanwhile, voice activated home automation is turning on lights, locking doors and garages, and activating security systems, home theaters, etc.

Voice-activated systems that let automobile drivers dictate and translate text messages, send email, and update Facebook are on the horizon, too. In fact, more than half of all new cars will integrate some type of voice recognition by 2019, according to the electronics consulting firm IMS Research.

We’ve been waiting for this a long time, folks, and 2014 will be the year the voice screams! Voice activated search, messaging, learning and writing will finally come of age in 2014 … and the world will never be the same.

In fact, according to TrendHunterTech, we already can access 25 voice recognition innovations on everything from watches,clocks  remote controls, appliances, cars, toys, robotic secretaries, nurses and wait staff.

But wait, there’s more. How about voice activated direct mail? It’s here and it’s now. MAILPOW brings sound—voices, lectures, music –, even your own voice—to direct mail. The audience was wowed, when this service was highlighted at DMAW’s “Innovative Formats and Integrated Campaigns” seminar in April this year.

In fact, the next voice you hear – or create – could be a robot. A start up named Guide is working on a way to transform nearly any online article into a video news piece.

Can you hear me now?