In-Text Citations and Works Cited--Again

At this point you have had several opportunities to refresh your knowledge of copying MLA format. It ain't neurosurgery. It doesn't require thinking.

Many students have done well. Some have confused past MLA formats with the current, which is understandable. Finally there are those who by all appearances of their work don't give a damn. You should because a poorly maintained, work-cited paper could cost you at least one letter grade, a waste. Citing works is an act of generosity that could save a reader hours of research and that takes only a minute of clerical time for the writer. In other words, if you don't give a damn about the works you have cited, you don't give a damn about the reader. If you don't give a damn about the reader, you probably won't write nearly well enough for the reader to care about what you think.

Format for Words Cited Page for the NYTimes article in the "Where's Waldo..." Posting:

Brustein, Joshua. "Tag-Along Marketing." NYTimes. 7 Nov. 2010. Web. 10 Nov. 2010.

Let's presume the NYTimes did not give the article a byline. Here's how the Works Cited listing would appear:

"Tag-Along Marketing." NYTimes. 7 Nov. 2010. Web. 10 Nov. 2010.

Can you vary the punctuation at your pleasure? Sure. Can you capitalize words as you see fit? Why not? There would be a problem, though: You would be wrong. Your grade would suffer. 

Should I quote Brustein, how would the in-text citation appear?

"Everything is in place for location-based social networking to be the next big thing" (Brustein).

What would happen if the article did not have a byline? Keywords from the article's title.

"Everything is in place for location-based social networking to be the next big thing" (Tag-Along).

Deadlines for Semester's End

• Plain text and Word cover letters/resumes--Nov. 10 at 11:59 pm.
• Draft of long report--Nov. 13 at 11:59 pm.
• Final version of long report--Nov. 29 at 11:59 pm.
• PowerPoint Presentation (should you want to present using PowerPoint or Impress)--Nov. 30 at 11:59 pm.
• Presentations. Attendance mandatory. Dec. 1, 6, and 8.
• Final versions of resumes and cover letters as well as extra credit assignments--Dec. 8 at 11:59 pm. Nothing accepted beyond that deadline.

Where's Waldo? Where's Wanda? Where's Walter? Finding People with Mobile Devices

"As of August, only 4 percent of American adults who used the Internet also used location-based services, which allow people to “check in” to physical locations via their cellphones to earn coupons or keep up with friends, the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project reported last week," writes New York Times reporter Joshua Brustein. "And only 1 percent of Internet users are on such services on any given day, an indication that those who do use the services still have not integrated them into their daily lives." The question is why? Do they know about the services? If yes, then is it a privacy issue?

Users Limit Facebook Fav's

"More than ever, social media users are including brands in their list of friends and follows but according to the 2010 Cone Consumer New Media Study, five is the magic cutoff number," according to Cynthia Boris of MarketingPilgrim.

"So, who cares?" goes the non-inquisitive, short-sighted, wanna-be business executive, posing as a student.

Marketers do. They do not want their products or services to be number six, thereby not making it on someone's likes, missing the opportunity to be noticed by some 100-300 Facebook "friends." It's not missing one site, marketers fear. It is not being posted on scores or hundreds of sites.

So with the release of the study, marketers using social networking sites will find themselves not only  competing with their competitors, they will be competing with any company promoting any product on the same social networks for a slot on individual's likes list.

Different Way of Looking at Sites

"Today, the paradigm has flipped. No longer is the marketer's site the only destination and often it is not even the primary one," according to ClickZ. "Site content and traffic are used to multiply traffic and expand potential customer base through a host of powerful social tools to encourage sharing and other "social" behaviors that build audience, sales, brand equity, and loyalty. While there are clearly powerful strategies, tools, and programs to engage with your customers socially, 'socializing' your site is a critical component of an overall social marketing strategy."

MySpace Attempts to Revive Itself

ClickZ reports that "even as it labors to reverse audience declines through a sharpened focus on entertainment content, MySpace hopes new investments in ad products and consumer research will keep brand advertisers interested."

McDonald's Twests McRibs

"McDonald's purchased Twitter's Promoted Trend for Friday to push its "McRib" sandwich, which has been momentarily reintroduced to its menu. According to industry sources, an all-day Promoted Trend purchase costs around $80,000," according to ClickZ.

The Digital Divide Finally Getting Bridged

eMarketer released a study showing that "The infamous 'digital divide' is finally showing real signs of narrowing, as more and more research gives evidence of rising home broadband usage among black adults. Earlier research already showed this market owned more cell phones—and used more of their features—than other demographic groups."

Meanwhile "Pew Research Center says online Hispanics use location-based services more than any other demographic, as 10 percent of those surveyed had recorded a check-in. That number is noticeably higher than black (5 percent) and white (3 percent) online Americans checking in," according to a ClickZ post.

Gap Giving Away Jeans on Facebook/And Others Such as McDonald's, Starbucks, and Others

"One day in the near future, Facebook says, Gap will give away a free pair of jeans for the first 10,000 check-ins via Places. And that's how Facebook today announced - among other measures - a 'Deals' platform for business promotions that was recently rumored to be in development," according to a ClickZ post. 'In the coming weeks, the self-service platform will be made available to the thousands of businesses with a Facebook Page,' according to the Palo Alto, CA-based social media giant. In addition to the Gap promotion, Facebook said The North Face will give $1 to charity for any user who checks in at a store or a national park. Other launch partners include Palms Casino Resort, Alamo Drafthouse, and the NBA's Golden State Warriors. After unveiling the five premiere launch partners, Facebook showed a slide depicting 22 brands - from a wide variety of niches - that it says will soon be using 'Deals.' They included McDonald's, Starbucks, H&M, Macy's, National Park Foundation, the NFL's San Francisco 49ers, and universities like Texas Tech and Nebraska...."

Google Expands Its Ad Network into the Mobile Market

ClickZ reports that "A year after it agreed to buy mobile ad network AdMob for $750, Google has taken its first step to integrate the unit with its own ad business. AdMob's Android and iPhone application publishers will soon be able to fill their unsold inventory with Google AdSense ads, letting advertisers extend their mobile campaigns across AdMob’s network."

Will Streaming Movies Clog the Net?

The possibility exists. Concern is rising that as companies such as Netflix offer streaming videos, the Internet will not have the broadband capacity to keep up. Think it will not happen. Just remember the end of last semester. Demand for access to the Web increased. Students were researching papers, running their IM's and Twitter accounts, downloading songs, listening to Internet radio, watching videos, reading emails, playing online video games--all of which is data that must be transmitted. Transmission slowed, frustrating you especially when you needed to download something now. Why did it slow? The transmission cables can handle only so much data. As demand for data increased, the system slowed. Imagine that problem on a national scale, which is precisely what happened recently in Canada.

Slate reported the following:

On Sept. 22, Netflix began offering its streaming movie service in Canada. This was Netflix's first venture outside of the United States, and because the company wasn't offering its traditional DVD-by-mail plan to Canadians, its prospects seemed questionable. How many people would pay $7.99 per month (Canadian) for the chance to watch Superbad whenever they wanted?

A lot, it turns out. According to Sandvine, a network management company that studies Internet traffic patterns, 10 percent of Canadian Internet users visited Netflix.com in the week after the service launched....Netflix videos quickly came to dominate broadband lines across Canada...At peak hours (around 9 p.m.) the service accounted for more than 90 percent of the traffic on one Canadian broadband network.

It's not just Canada. Netflix is swallowing America's bandwidth, too, and it probably won't be long before it comes for the rest of the world. That's one of the headlines from Sandvine's Fall 2010 Global Internet Phenomena Report...According to Sandvine, Netflix accounts for 20 percent of downstream Internet traffic during peak home Internet usage hours in North America.... [Netflix] seems sure to keep growing....

Over time, we've shifted away from "asynchronous" applications toward "real-time" apps. Every year, that is, we're using more of our bandwidth to download stuff we need right now, and less for stuff we need later." Sandvine's 2008 report (PDF) showed that all the applications that saw big increases in traffic were dependent on real-time access...

What does that mean for Internet marketing? Should the Net slow or clog, creating long waits that were common years ago before broadband, people will not use the Web as frequently as they do today, giving them less opportunity to see the ads.

Creating a Super [Vertical] Blog from Other Blogs--Something Like This

WordPress.com, a supplier of free blog space much like Blogger, created a "vertical - a site called FoodPress in which it aggregates content written by its food bloggers [, meaning bloggers who use WordPress].  Each day, FoodPress will feature snippets of food-related posts." That is the report from MarketingVox. Why would WordsPress want a blog about what's already blogged? Convenience for the reader, much as this site aggregates content from Websites and blogs. With the greater diversity of content and the more selective the content, WordPress.com hopes to generate readers, which will attract advertisers.

Stats Indicating Growth of U.S. Internet Marketing

"Ads on Facebook reached almost two thirds of U.S. Internet users in September, according to data from comScore. The online measurement company estimates 62.4 percent of all U.S. users were exposed to Facebook ads over the course of the month," says a ClickZ report.

In a separate story the website noted, "Online video ads reached almost half of the U.S. online population in September, according to data from comScore. The measurement firm estimates 45.4 percent of users viewed at least one video ad over the course of the month, but were exposed to an average of 32.2 each."

Meanwhile comScore also says that "Yahoo's [ad] network continues to reach more U.S. users than any other, with 85.9 percent audience penetration. AOL Advertising and Google's Ad Network follow it, with 85.7 and 82.7 percent, respectively, followed by ValueClick and Turn Media," according to another ClickZ posting.

Finally, "Google and Yahoo sites continued to attract the most unique U.S. users to their properties in September, according to comScore. Yahoo saw a slight drop in traffic versus August however, while Google saw a gain, handing the latter the top spot for the month. Meanwhile, Facebook continued its growth among U.S. users, reaching 148.4 million of them over the course of the month."

Job Sites to Visit

Most will ignore this advice. Most students think they can find a job--easily. You're not looking for a career path from "fry guy"  CFO of McDonalds--although that makes a wonderful Hollywood romantic comedy starring you and the co-star of your dreams.

Looking for work is work. It's harder than work because it's not emotionally or financially rewarding until the end of the process--landing the job.

Ideally when looking for work, you will not care where you are based. Most people, however, do care. Don't however narrow your vision to one place, such as Bridgeport. Be ready to travel as much as 50 miles of your ideal location. In the case of Bridgeport that would mean from New York City to New Haven and north to Hartford. There's no south because travel across the sound is expensive.

You can also search for jobs by region, as in the case of this international job search site offered by the New York Times. Does it have all the managerial jobs being offered in Hong Kong or Paris? No. Does it have all the managerial job openings in Hong Kong or Paris whose companies are looking for someone with experience in the U.S.? Yes.

Find a paper that serves the region best. In this case it is the New York Time and the Hartford Courant. Most of these sites are contracted out to job site publishers such as Monster.com. Don't assume the listings are the same. They are not. The Times contracts Monster to maintain the site and the data base of resumes, but the Times draws its own job listings.

US Recovery Elusive; Job Competition When You Graduate

In class on Wednesday I referred to the economic troubles that plagued Japan a few years ago. I claimed that the U.S. could face similar troubles in the next few. The New York Times recently reported:

In the United States, a robust recovery remains stubbornly elusive, and Mr. Bernanke is said to be ready to take new, unconventional steps to increase the money supply in order to maintain the uncertain growth of the past year. He is also said by close associates to favor further fiscal measures to stimulate the economy. But in the current political climate, with Republicans poised to make strong gains in the midterm elections while preaching fiscal austerity, the prospect of more federal stimulus spending seems remote, and it is unclear if monetary policy alone will be enough to restore healthy growth.
Partly as a result, some economists now predict that it could take years or even a decade for the American economy to regain the levels of employment and vigor achieved before the 2008 crisis. The growing political pressure for cuts in federal spending — along with plunging consumer confidence and companies that seem more intent on cutting costs and hoarding cash than investing in new growth — have led economists to talk of the United States’ entering a grim new era of austerity.

If memory of U.S. history serves me well, the U.S. has not faced deflation since the mid-1950s. What does this mean for you? Competition for jobs will be tougher when you graduate. Therefore, creating a good resume becomes an even more important priority.

More Thoughts about Your Thesis

Temptation and ease might draw some students to write theses such as the following:

XYZ Company uses digital marketing to further its marketing goals.

XYZ Company will achieve its marketing goals.

Neither is acceptable. Why? Because you can substitute any company's name into those slots.

Some students might want to write about Google, Bing, Facebook, or YouTube. You can only if you describe how these companies use digital marketing to solve their own particular marketing problems. The thesis is not acceptable if you write about how these companies became powerhouses in the digital marketplace or how other companies use these sites to further their goals. You did that in the first half of the semester.

Now you must use what you have learned. You must read, think, and analyze. Apply your new found skills to the digital marketing campaign of a company or institution. I have mentioned plenty in the blog (see the next blog entry) and I listed several in class the other day. You cannot simply wing this. You must think.

Having Trouble with Your Thesis

You need a thesis sentence. Let's assume you have not paid attention in class or were missing from class. The definition of a thesis sentence: A sentence that describes what you intend to show as valid. A well-done thesis runs 10 words or less. Do not use passive voice. Do not define.

(In case you do not yet understand: a definition by the very definition of the word is a given, much as this sentence is. The reader has two choices: accept or reject, much as I am forcing you to do with my concept of excessive use of defining. It is wrong when used as thesis statement because you are telling the reader what is true rather than persuading her/him what could be true. As a writer, you must persuade. [Did you notice my excessive defining in this paragraph and my lack of even attempting to persuade? Did you not feel a tad annoyed by the tone? That's what defining does.])

Second, you need to find a company or organization that has a strong digital marketing campaign. You may want to write about a company you "like," but actually you probably do not like the company. You like one of its products. Or you want to write about something different, some company never mentioned in class. Fine approaches. If they fall short, try this:

At the end of each blog entry, you will see a "label." Look for one that says "Company's Marketing Campaign Profiled." Click the phrase. The latest 25 entries about companies using digital marketing will appear.

Investigate the company on the Web. Type the following into a search window, including the quotation marks and spacing: "Company name"+"digital marketing". What kind of results do you get?

Read a few of the results. You cannot come up with a helpful thesis unless you know what you are writing. Knowledge--meaning knowing extensively about what you want to write--is a major requirement of writing a report well.

Blogging as a Marketing Tool

If you are discussing how companies are using blogs for marketing purposes, take a glance at this from eMarketer:

The percentage of US companies that use blogs for marketing purposes will rise to 43% in 2012, from 34% in 2010. This forecast reflects the increasing use of blogs by media companies, marketers and other businesses such as retailers, B2B firms, academic institutions and government agencies.

Blue Jeans Manufacturer Turns to Facebook

"Levi's brought in rock band Nada Surf to perform live via the company's Facebook page on Oct. 23 and picked up around 45,000 "Likers" in the process. To push the branded content event, Levi's purchased Facebook.com ads leading into last weekend, while the copy encouraged viewers to hit the "Like" button in order to watch the concert," according to a post on ClickZ.

General Mills Another Large Digital Marketer

If you do not already have a company to write about or if the one you selected came up short, you might want to look into the digital marketing program of General Mills (read the entire story from Finance-Commerce). You could also investigate these search results.

Google Is the Gorilla of the Net

"It’s not a surprise that Google is big.
Perhaps the surprise is that the search giant shows no signs of slowing in its growth. Indeed, according to estimates, Google’s share of all internet traffic is anywhere from a modest 6.4% to an estimated high of 12%!" That's a post from MarketingPilgrim.

World Wildlife Fund Markets on Facebook

"The World Wildlife Fund is officially taking the wraps off of what it says is the first non-profit catalog on Facebook on Tuesday....WWF's Gift Center allows supporters, for a donation, to make symbolic animal adoptions from a list of more than 100 species such as tigers, pandas and polar bears and receive a thank you gift in return." And so MarketingVox introduces a new marketing campaign.

Three More Reasons Indicating the Expanding Nature of Digital Marketing

As just another indication of the expanding mobile digital advertising, "Google's mobile advertising unit AdMob today announced the availability of interactive video and interactive interstitial units across its network," says ClickZ. "The new formats have been available on iPhone devices since November 2009, but the recent proliferation of Android handsets suggests the platform and its audience is becoming increasingly attractive to advertisers. According to Google, over 200,000 new Android devices are now activated on a daily basis, compared with 60,000 daily in February. In addition, it says the number of apps in its Android market has doubled since May to reach 100,000, demonstrating continued support from developers."

At the same time, MarketingVox reports that "with Windows Phone 7 getting relatively positive reviews - or at least not getting slammed like the short-lived Kin - advertisers are taking a second look at the quietly-launched accompanying ad platform, Microsoft Advertising Exchange for Mobile."

Meanwhile, let us not forget "old-fashioned" digital marketing because "Google's introduced a new online advertising beta called Boost that enables business owners to create online search ads from directly within their Google Places account," according to MarketingVox post.

Nokia Launches Campaign for New Phone

As reported in DMNews:

Objective: To engage consumers and create buzz for launch of Nokia N8 smartphone.

Nokia has finished a contest to create buzz for the launch of its Nokia N8 smartphone and build relationships with the developer community worldwide.

Called “Make My Apps,” the contest offered consumers “the chance to influence and inspire the next great app by inviting them to share their best app ideas for creation with Nokia developers,” says Jason Dyer, head of online marketing for Nokia North America....

Mazda Giving Away Car on Social Network

"Mazda is giving away a $15,000 car on Foursquare in the largest single prize yet on the geo-social platform. The "Inner Driver Challenge" campaign will feature soul singer Mayer Hawthorne's tour locations and end Dec. 7." That's the news from ClickZ.

How to Use Social Media without Being Invasive

"This year has never been bigger for social media. Facebook has more than 500 million active users, Twitter obtains over 300,000 new users a day, and YouTube exceeds 2 billion views per day. Devices designed to support social media, from Droids to iPads, are selling out before they hit the market. Even old standby brands like Old Spice are finding a new home in social media," says ClickZ....."The challenge is to find the appropriate opportunity for behavioral targeting, without seeming to be too invasive or acting like a virtual stalker."

Cynical Posting about Starbucks Media

An AdAge blogger writes: "Within the coming weeks, you will be launching the Starbucks Digital Network in partnership with Yahoo, and you'll be offering free content from the likes of The Wall Street Journal and Zagat, among others. While that's fantastic, I have to wonder, what you, Starbucks, Mr. Schultz, get out of it? More seats filled with underemployed Starbucks regulars who now have an incentive to stay longer and buy less, while the employed with expense accounts looking for a place to perch for a coffee meeting move elsewhere?"

ABC Turns to Social Media

"ABC Family will launch a holiday campaign to build awareness and engage fans of the show Pretty Little Liars before it returns to the small screen on January 3," according to a post by DMNews.

Unilever (the Axe Guys from the HD Marketing Report) Explains Digital Marketing

AdAge reported during this past summer: "Unilever is doubling its digital investment this year, and part of the impetus behind that has been Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Keith Weed getting 30 of the company's line managers to join him on a trip to Silicon Valley earlier this year to put together deals such as the company's recently announced charter sponsorship on Apple's iAd platform."

Republicans Take a Page from the Obama '08 Campaign

Obama '08 was the first U.S. presidential campaign to make full use of digital marketing. Its success was not lost on the Republican National Committee, which "provided voter data to AOL recently for last-minute online ad targeting. An e-mail sent to GOP Senate campaigns from the National Republican Senatorial Committee this morning touted the data pass-along, telling them they could now target Republicans by location, voting habits, and other criteria. AOL has pushed its voter data matching and targeting services this election cycle, as the company has ramped up its political ad services and sales operation." So goes a ClickZ
post.

NASA Goes Digital with US Space Program

ClickZ reports that "there was considerable buzz on Friday after an astronaut checked in on Foursquare from outer space, but what NASA has been doing on the ground with social media may be just as intriguing. For instance, who would have guessed that the federal agency had 626,700 followers on Twitter, as well as a dedicated social marketing team?" The question: Why? Could it be that the agency is hoping to gain electoral support from young voters? Why? The more voters supporting the space program, the more likely NASA will receive the budget requests from Congress.

You Might Want to Incorporate Ideas from This Report in Your Long Report

"Good blogger relationships are critical to the success of many integrated social media campaigns, but finding the right blogging partner or partners can be a brand's worse nightmare," goes the eMarketer post.

How to Use Social Apps

"Digital marketers are shifting their advertising strategies on how they reach people in social apps," notes a post on ClickZ.

Lexus Takes Digital Push During October

"Does playing drums while driving a car sound like fun? Digital marketers for Lexus's new 2011 IS model hope so, as their percussion-minded TV commercial will be seen on various websites for...[October]. The :30 spot debuted on the Torrance, CA-based firm's YouTube channel last Friday, and will appear as a one-day home page takeover ad on the video site on Sept. 18, David Nordstrom, marketing VP at Lexus, told ClickZ."

People Paying for Online Content--Madness or Not

FT reports that "digital subscriptions for Pearson’s Financial Times, a newspaper which charges for online content, grew more than 50% in the first nine months of the year." News Corp., which owns the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times, which owns the Boston Globe, are using the FT as a subscription model.

Hollywood Gets Social

"Augme Technologies, Inc., ...has launched a mobile marketing campaign with Lionsgate for its upcoming universal-themed feature film, For Colored Girls...written for the screen and directed by Tyler Perry" says MarketWatch.

Class Canceled for Today

I will not make class today. Read the syllabus. And bring in a thesis for your long (not short) report on Monday. In your long report, you will write about how a company or institution, such as the American Cancer Association or the National Football League, is using Internet marketing to further its aims. Do not come in with generic thesis, such as: The National Football League is using Internet marketing to accomplish its goals. Why? You could insert the name of most strong marketing organizations into that sentence. Original idea. You need to research your company or institution. If you want to write about a search engine, fine but you must discover how the search engine is using Internet marketing to accomplish its marketing goals -- not how it earns revenue from its search ads or ad network.

I will be at the library on Sunday from 3:00 to 4:00. See you Monday.

Whiskey Distiller Goes Interactive

"Beam Global Spirits & Wine launched the “Beamfire Sweepstakes” on October 15 to interactively promote its Jim Beam Black Double Aged Bourbon. The company worked with interactive agency Zezza Network on the effort," so starts a post on DMNews. "The campaign's sweepstakes element corresponds to Beam's '8 Years Changes Everything' advertising effort, which was designed to play up the product's eight-year aging process, said Rob Mason, US director of bourbons for Beam Global Spirits & Wine. The effort, which will run through mid-December, encourages consumers to toss items into a virtual bonfire to celebrate how much they've matured over the past eight years."

An Example Showing the Growth of Internet Display Advertising

"Double-digit growth in Yahoo's display ad revenue helped offset some declines in search revenues as it posted a 113 percent rise in operating income for the third quarter 2010 to $396 million. However revenue increased just 2 percent compared to the same period last year, to $1.6 billion," according to ClickZ.

Writing about Social Media/Blogging: READ This!!!

ClickZ recently posted the following: "Understanding the giant world of social media (remember it's not just Facebook or Twitter) is a tough task. What's even harder to grasp is how to integrate your social media efforts with your other marketing tactics. Social media marketing doesn't operate in a vacuum; in order for it to work successfully you need to integrate your social media marketing with all of your marketing channels in play. From e-mail to offline, each channel plays a significant role in whether or not your social media marketing strategy will be successful."

eMarketer recently released a study that notes: "The percentage of US companies that use blogs for marketing purposes will rise to 43% in 2012, from 34% in 2010. This forecast reflects the increasing use of blogs by media companies, marketers and other businesses such as retailers, B2B firms, academic institutions and government agencies."


Read the linked stories in full.

THINK

Once that was a sign in every IBM office--until people became too familiar with it and failed to notice it. Yet it's the cornerstone of business--and writing.

Most students and adults think that they think--a lot. We don't--not nearly as much as we think we think, as I explained earlier in the semester. We react, a simple response to a stimulus whether it be someone waving at us or answering a multiple choice question exam. Reactions work 90 percent of the time. That darn 10 percent gets us in trouble.

For example, assume that you are writing your short report. What does the eMarketer report have to do with what you are writing? If you limit your thought to that one question, then the answer comes up as nothing. You have a problem, however. You are not thinking. As a result, you ask the wrong question.

Most students referenced social networking in their presentations, which leads me to presume that they will use that idea in their short reports. The typical student idea goes like this although rarely this clearly: As more Americans use social networks, more companies view the networks as marketing opportunities.

Now how does the eMarketer report relate?

You must connect the ideas, link them together, ensuring that the first idea leads directly to the second, and the second to the third, and the third to the fourth, and so forth until you reach your conclusion. Therefore a student could connect the ideas mentioned simply like this:

As more Americans use social networks, more companies view the networks as marketing opportunities. They are advertising and marketing on sites such as Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and Twitter. [Include evidence of such]. As they market more on social networks, they are finding out that they need to take different tacts in order to make their advertising campaigns effective. For example, an eMarketer study recently discovered "the importance of offering deals and discounts on Facebook fan pages as well as the nature of brand following as a form of self-expression, through which advocates can show support for a company they love. But what triggers Facebook users to 'like' a brand is typically some form of outreach" ("Brand Campaigns"). Mountain Dew used precisely this approach (explain with details)...Along the same lines, Pepsi canceled its traditional advertising for the Super Bowl and created a $20 million marketing campaign on social networking sites (Martinez)....(explain with details).

These inducements lead to potential customers "discovering" a brand, which has become a critical element of today's marketing. "The ‘Urban Market Research’ (UMR) study analysed the spending and brand behaviours of 16-30 year olds study and found self-discovery marketing, where consumers feel like they have discovered new products, brands, and artists in their own time, is preferred to ‘interruptive’ marketing tactics" (Newspup). (More details.)

"Brand Campaigns Drive Most Social Network Following." eMarketer.com. 18 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010.

Martinez, Juan. "What Makes Pepsi's Digital Marketing So Refreshing." Destinationcrm.com. 13 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010.

Newspup. "Young Adults Want to 'Discover' Brands." Marketingmag.com. 12 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. 

(Unfortunately "Newspup" is the byline given for the article.)

At various points, the writer could include information from the study that claimed that the nature of digital marketing has changed, becoming more of a conversation rather than a interruption.

(For those of you who have not read this blog frequently, I will tell you that a few days ago a blog entry talked of both Dew's and Pepsi's new social networking marketing tie-in.)

In that example, I created more than 110 words describing the influence of social networking--without the additions indicated. It could easily have reached 300 words.

To create this, however, you have to do the following:

• Know the material--meaning having read the assignments, probably more than once.
• Know what information has been posted on the blog.
• Those two steps enable you to ask the right questions.
• The right questions lead to original thinking.

Need to Deal to Get a Deal

"Research on social media users who follow brands has shown marketers the importance of offering deals and discounts on Facebook fan pages as well as the nature of brand following as a form of self-expression, through which advocates can show support for a company they love. But what triggers Facebook users to “like” a brand is typically some form of outreach," according to a report from eMarketer.

When writing your long reports, think of how this relates to the social networking marketing campaign of the company/institution that you are writing about.

There's Now a Marketing "Farmer" in FarmsVille

"If a brand has 'farm' in its name, it's difficult to ignore the possibility of a FarmVille integration," so goes a post on ClickZ. "And when a company actually owns a branded zeppelin, it would be a shame not to include a virtual version of that flying machine in one of the most popular social games around. Starting today, The Farmers Insurance Group of Companies is doing just that....[It] will offer players of Zynga's FarmVille game access to a Farmers-branded airship."

Geo Ads Coming About

Marketers are exploring geo-ads, meanings ads that appear based on the virtual or actual location of the viewer. For example:

"Starbucks and L'Oreal will be testing geo-fencing in the U.K. for the next six months, the two brands announced this evening with Placecast and mobile telecommunications company O2; Placecast provides a technology called 'Shop Alerts.' Geo-fencing allows stores and brands to offer an opt-in "auto check-in" service to their patrons, no matter if they use a smart phone or regular cellular device. Such users opt in for what amounts to automatic geo-social check-ins and check-outs when they arrive or leave a location measuring 1.5 miles in radius," says a ClickZ post.

In another post, the website notes that "The 'huge amount of votes' that Pespi Refresh Everything participants have submitted on their cell phones will lead to a heavier mobile emphasis for that initiative next year, according to Shiv Singh, head of digital at PepsiCo. In an interview with ClickZ, Singh said the beverages company will do more geo-social marketing, while also premiering a Refresh Everything iPhone app within the next month."

Mountain Dew and JC Penny "Like" Facebook Buttons

"Mountain Dew and JC Penney are including the Facebook "Like" button in ad units that will run across display networks starting this weekend," according to a post from ClickZ.

AdWeek adds: "Mountain Dew today rolls out an innovative ad campaign featuring banners that incorporate Facebook’s "like" icon, marking the first time the social-networking behemoth will extend its social/sharing functionality to ads appearing on other Web sites. Web users will be able to "like" Mountain Dew within a banner ad appearing on a host of sites, such as The Onion, Crave, MTV, College Humor, Funny or Die and Break.com. And when users do so, their friends will automatically be alerted via the Facebook News Feed as long as they are logged into that venue at the time."

Disney Decorates for Halloween

DMNews reports "Disney Online is decorating its four mother- and family-targeted websites to promote Halloween ideas and products for parents and families. The company is promoting costume, craft and recipe ideas through the end of October on Family.com, FamilyFun.com, BabyZone.com and Kaboose.com, as well as running a contest."

JetBlue Goes Digital

"JetBlue is launching a online, social media, in-flight, print and out-of-home campaign that will highlight the customer service discrepancy between it and other airlines," according to a MarketingVox post.

GE's YouTube Campaign to Reach Goal

"GE has scored more than 2 million views in the first week of its Ecomagination YouTube challenge, putting it well on track to reach its goal of 10 million views within the first three-months of the campaign.
The contest follows an increasingly familiar structure: Pay established YouTube celebrities to make creative videos centering on your brand that in turn ask their fans to get involved on their behalf," goes the post on ClickZ. "In this case, GE has recruited 15 video stars, including Brittani Louise Taylor, DaveDays and Barely Political, to make videos in which they ask their fans to suggest a "green" activity they can perform in a subsequent video. They are also asking their fans to take pictures that showcase their commitment to sustainability and upload them to Flckr."

Pepsi Said to Have Great Social Marketing Campaign

"Looking for evidence of a top-notch social campaign? Look no further than the Pepsi Refresh Project. When PepsiCo decided this year to forego the customary Super Bowl advertising for its Pepsi line of soft drinks, many industry observers were surprised. But the real shock was what the company pursued instead: a $20 million social media campaign that enabled people to submit and campaign for ideas (proposals to "refresh" their communities), and then empowered the public to vote among the submitted proposals," writes CRM.

Online Ad Spending Up in 2010

"The first six months of 2010 represented the largest on record in terms of online ad spend, according to the IAB's bi-annual Internet Advertising Revenue Report," says a ClickZ post. "The research, conducted in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers, estimates advertisers spent a total of $12.1 billion during that period, representing 11.3 percent growth compared with the first half of 2009. Based on the report's findings, David Silverman, a partner at PwC, said online ad spend is on course to reach at least $24 billion in 2010, which would represent the industry's healthiest year since the IAB began conducting its annual spending research in 1996."

Data Highlights from IAB

($ millions if not indicated)
Advertising Formats:
Search and display-related ads continue to be leading formats.

	FH 2010	FH 2009
Search	47% ($5,747)	47% ($5,148)
Display Related:	36% ($4,356)	34% ($3,759)
-Banner Ads	23% ($2,744)	22% ($2,394)
-Rich Media	6% ($743)	7% ($704)
-Digital Video	5% ($627)	4% ($477)
-Sponsorship	2% ($242)	2% ($184)
Classifieds	10% ($1,262)	10% ($1,116)
Referrals/Lead Generation	5% ($642)	7% ($728)
E-mail	1% ($120)	1% ($149)

Retailer Tries to Fense In/Out Customers -- Digitally

"The North Face is testing geo-fencing in a serious fashion, as the retailer has rolled out the strategy across each of its 31 locations in recent months. Geo-fencing allows stores to offer an opt-in "auto check-in" service to their patrons, no matter if they use a smart phone or regular cellular device," according to a post on ClickZ.

Two Automotive Marketers' Digital Marketing Campaigns

• Mitsubishi Motors North America has created the Mitsubishi Live Drive, an online test drive. "The virtual experience, involving the new Mitsubishi Outlander Sport, is to be available on a microsite from Nov. 1 to Nov. 10. Beginning next Thursday, computer users can sign up at the microsite — outlandersport.com — where they will be given codes that can be used to line up for the live test drive. The effort is being created by an agency and a production company, working with Simon Cave, a Web designer, and James Brighton, an engineer who specializes in robotics," reports a blogger for  NYTimes.

• A few days ago ClickZ reported that "Chevrolet has been appearing in a targeted paid Twitter promo today as the top listing in the site's "Who to follow/Suggestions for you" section, following up Xbox's and Rock Star Game's appearances earlier this week. Part of the 'Promoted Accounts' platform unveiled via Twitter's blog on Monday, the ads are served based on users' individually shown interests via an algorithm."

Young Adults Prefer to "Discover" Brands for Themselves

"Subtlety is the key to winning a slice of Australia’s $68.56 billion youth market, a report by Lifelounge and Sweeney Research claims.
The ‘Urban Market Research’ (UMR) study analysed the spending and brand behaviours of 16-30 year olds study and found self-discovery marketing, where consumers feel like they have discovered new products, brands, and artists in their own time, is preferred to ‘interruptive’ marketing tactics," according to a post on MarketingMag. Could you not say the say of America's youth?

Data Upon Data about Digital Marketing

MarketingPilgrim notes that "If you like stats and graphics, you’ll go positively mad over a new website by custom research agency TNS. The website is called DiscoverDigitalLife.com and it’s a public repository for the massive amounts of data collected in regard to consumer’s online behavior and attitudes." I couldn't see the page because my screen (10 inches) was too small. The site should open for someone using a typical laptop or computer.

GE Turns to YouTube Stars

AdWeek reports that General Electric is "leaning on 15 YouTube 'stars' to kick off a campaign about sustainability."

Health Care Providers/Care Dealers Turn to Social Web Networks

Check this out from the BaltimoreSun: "Monica Dillon wasn't happy with her eye care provider, so when she saw an online deal for an exam and glasses for $50, she clicked on it...'The timing was right so I jumped on it,' she said about her purchase via Groupon, a deal-of-the-day e-mail sent to tens of thousands of people in the Baltimore region and millions nationwide....'This worked out; they found a problem with my prescription.'Katzen Eye Group, the company behind the deal, is among the growing number of health care providers testing the latest in social media.


Meanwhile, TK Carsites’ Power Social has created "four packages for auto dealers to boost leads... through automotive social media marketing....[T]he packages integrate social media with auto dealers’ websites. The advanced packages also offer a custom, branded setup of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, along with daily updates. Dealers with premium packages can add inventory, specials, coupons and other applications to Facebook."

The Future of Location-Based Ads

Technology Review notes that "the spread of smart phones that track their owners' precise location seems like a wonderful development for advertisers. These devices could enable completely new kinds of digital marketing that make ads more relevant, meaningful, and effective," but adds that the reality of such a development is more complicated than it may seem.

Games that Change Behavior on Social Networks

"Can your social network make you healthier? It's a question that health organizations are asking more and more--as part of a wave of new gaming experiments that aim to persuade players to think and act differently while having fun," asks Technology Review. The answer: yes, assuming that the individual is already motivated to change. See how organizations are making use of this.

Read How Digital Marketing Works

Pizza Hut and the Queensland tourism board show how web and mobile campaigns can yield real-world business results, according to Fortune Magazine.

Acuvue Changes Promo from Email to Facebook

Contact lens company Acuvue's results from its email campaign aimed at teenagers lagged in the past few years. It turned to Facebook. Initially the company could not get the results it needed, but "since January, ...[the] contact lenses brand's Facebook 'likers' have jumped from about 10,000 to 41,000." The figures jumped because the company converted its teen e-mail subscribers to its page on the social site, according to a post on ClickZ.

Indie Rock Group Signs--Not with a Record Label but a Digital Ad Agency

ClickZ notes that "With the music industry becoming more and more digitized and record labels reluctant to sign artists who aren't already a proven commodity on YouTube, it was only a matter of time before an aspiring rock star trusted his fate to a digital ad agency. Such is the case with AM, an indie solo artist from Los Angeles who has struck a unique collaborative deal with Razorfish. AM already has a record label (Filter) and a management team. But Razorfish will be filling many of the roles traditionally handled by a record label, as well as a few that only a digital ad agency would think of."

Google's Push for Display Ads

Real Time Bidding (Ad Exchanges) Changing Marketplace

"Publishers generated significantly higher revenue from real-time bidding campaigns in comparison to non-RTB campaigns, across all advertising verticals, by an average of 64%, according to a new study by PubMatic. It also found that RTB outperformed traditional run-of-network non-RTB media buying methods by an average of 749% and that audience targeted non-RTB campaigns outperformed run-of-network non-RTB campaigns by an average of 324%. Visit PubMatic after Oct. 18, to download a copy of the report," according to MarketingVox.

Here's a great description of real-time bidding that appeared in the NYTimes:

Now, companies like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft let advertisers buy ads in the milliseconds between the time someone enters a site’s Web address and the moment the page appears. The technology, called real-time bidding, allows advertisers to examine site visitors one by one and bid to serve them ads almost instantly.

For example, say a man just searched for golf clubs on eBay (which has been testing a system from a company called AppNexus for more than a year). EBay can essentially follow that person’s activities in real time, deciding when and where to show him near-personalized ads for golf clubs throughout the Web.

To be clear, the search engines do not provide real-time bidding. Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft own ad exchanges that work with ad networks. The ad exchanges, essentially algorithmic software, place the ads.

Google Experiments with a New Search Results Page

Taking a page from Bing's search results format, Google is experimenting with a new format. You can see an image of the page on Blogstorm.

Ford Creates Online TV Show to Market Focus

"Ford will launch a reality show on Hulu to promote its critical 2012 Ford Focus compact car. The show, Focus: Rally America, will have six teams of two competing against each other for the chance to win $100,000; the show is being produced by the same group that produces CBS’s The Amazing Race, reports the Detroit Free Press. The post appears on MediaBuyerPlanner. You can read more about the campaign at AdWeek.

McDonalds Marketing on Social Game FarmVille

"McDonald's has launched a one-day integration with FarmVille today. A branded farm and other game items have been placed within the popular Zynga-owned social game FarmVille and users are being encouraged to interact with the McDonald's content until midnight tonight. Those that do so will be rewarded with branded virtual goods, and other items to aid progress on their own virtual farms," says ClickZ. You can read another version of the story at AdWeek.

Chevy and xBox Promoting on Twitter

Chevrolet recently appeared in a targeted paid Twitter promo as the top listing in the site's "Who to follow/Suggestions for you" section, following up Xbox's and Rock Star Game's appearances earlier this week, reports ClickZ.
The ads, from about 40 brands according to a Twitter executive, "are served based on users' individually shown interests via an algorithm."

ClickZ used an excerpt from Twitter's blog to explain how the ads get targeted:

"Promoted Accounts are suggested based on a user's public list of whom they follow. When an advertiser promotes an account, Twitter's algorithm looks at that account's followers and determines other accounts that those users tend to follow. If a user follows some of those accounts, but not the advertiser's account, then Twitter may recommend the advertiser's Promoted Account to that user. For example, a lot of people who follow several gaming-related accounts also follow @xbox. If someone follows gaming-related accounts, but not @xbox, Twitter may recommend @xbox to that person."

You Should Read This and the Link

"As brand marketers gain more experience running social campaigns, they're becoming more sophisticated about choosing social media agencies. Head marketers at Pepsi, Ford, and Microsoft shared their thoughts on working with social media agencies last week during an event hosted by Huffington Post in New York's Times Square," reports ClickZ.

Social Media Campaign by Cheerios Backfires -- BIG Time

"With a recent 'promoted video' campaign on YouTube, Cheerios has provided the latest cautionary tale on the risks associated with social media marketing," says a post ClickZ. "Viewers who have searched for terms like 'heart,' 'heart issues,' and 'heart problems' and then clicked one of the cereal brand's promoted video ads are taken to a dedicated channel with approximately 30 narrative-minded videos, most under a minute long. The first is called 'Tennis' and features 'Victoria H.' from Chicago, IL, as the narrator. Another, 'Gardening,' has 'Paula' from Trinidad and Tobago.
While the videos (scroll down to view 'Tennis') could be labeled branded content, Cheerios itself isn't mentioned in them. That hasn't stopped YouTube users from posting mocking and sometimes strange comments about the brand since the videos went live three months ago."

I couldn't find them, but ClickZ claims that only those videos that mention Cheerios directly become negative.

70s Rock Band Tries Comeback -- Digitally

"It’s been years since sibling songstresses Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart had a big hit like their '80s comeback power ballad 'What About Love' or '70s tunes 'Barracuda' and 'Magic Man.' Now Heart is back with a new album, and it's trying to reach current and new fans online," reports ClickZ. "The band's digital agency had the luxury of being able to offer free song streams, and conjured up unique ways of getting those tunes in the ears of new and long-time listeners. Its strategy includes a one-of-a-kind integration with crafty community marketplace Etsy."

Fighting Breast Cancer across the Web

During October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) is running a traditional and digital media marketing campaign to raise awareness for early detection of breast cancer. The campaign will run across the multi-media network of media giant Gannett -- using traditional media such as USA Today, USA Weekend as well as digital sites such as USAToday.com, MomsLikeMe.com, and HighSchoolSports.net:

• Digital home page ads, created by Gannett's PointRoll, the leading provider of digital marketing solutions, on USAToday.com and seven Gannett Broadcast sites with interactive ads allowing audiences to directly register for the NBCF Early Detection Plan; 
• Targeted ad placements alongside USA Today's  health section, "Your Life";
• High-impact messaging [and I have no idea what that means] in USA Weekend; 
• HighSchoolSports.net, Gannett's hyperlocal online sports authority, will feature a fundraising drive with a donation scoreboard that tracks donations among all network high schools; 
• On-air campaign across seven Gannett television stations, driving audiences to register for the NBCF Early Detection Plan online; 
• A custom digital video produced by Gannett Video Enterprises designed to remind viewers to think about the impact of breast cancer; 
• A continuing education initiative for nurses sponsored by Kaplan University and promoted via Gannett Healthcare Group's platforms, including Nurse.com, Nursing Spectrum and NurseWeek magazines and CE Direct.

Joining NBCF in the campaign, Gannett will turn its McLean, VA, corporate towers pink every night with special lighting throughout the month.

You Already Know This, but Someone Proved It

"American young adults spend more time online than consuming other forms of media, according to [pdf] a new study from Edison Research," according to a posting on MarketingCharts.

Online Advertising Up in UK

The United Kingdom Internet Advertising Bureau notes that "the boom in online video, social and ‘performance’ marketing contributed to the 10% increase in online advertising spend during the first half of 2010, which saw UK marketers invest £1,968.6 million, lifting the medium to a record market share of 24.3%. The return to double-digit growth for the internet mirrors the general recovery of the entire advertising industry, with total UK expenditure increasing 6.3% to £8.1 billion between January and June 2010."

This ties in with a report posted on DigitialSpy: "The BBC [Britain's largest video/television producer and broadcaster] spent around £1.4m on digital display advertising in the 12 months to the end of March, but claims that most of its online marketing is delivered at little or no cost. The figures, released after a freedom of information request by The Guardian, indicate that the corporation spent £220,000 on paid-search marketing in the financial year 2009/10. That was part of the BBC's marketing budget of £93.3m for the 12 months, which has been reduced by £4.3m for the current financial year in-line with overall cost cutting plans."

Why Digital Marketing in US Is Stumbling

According to a posting on Warc, "A 'communications gap' between [American] senior marketers and chief information officers means many brand owners are not adequately responding to the digital age." In a survey of 636 executives in 50 companies, the CMO Council and Accenture discovered that "73% of contributors argued digital marketing is important, but 64% of marketers and 48% of IT managers had faced problems undertaking projects that could enhance effectiveness in this area."

See Saturday's Special Posting on this Blog

It  affects you.

How Much Video Do We Watch

The average American websurfer watched 14.3 hours of online video during August, translating into more than 5.2 billion video "sessions" for the 178 million American Internet users. They also watched more than 3.8 billion video ads, with Hulu generating the highest number of video ad impressions at 790 million.That's the word from comScore.

Top U.S. Online Video Properties by Video Content Views Ranked by Unique Video ViewersAugust 2010Total U.S. – Home/Work/University LocationsSource: comScore Video Metrix
Property	Total Unique Viewers (000)	Viewing Sessions (000)	Minutes per Viewer
Total Internet : Total Audience	177,622	5,230,690	860.4
Google Sites	146,274	1,903,240	269.5
Facebook.com	58,596	243,210	20.5
Yahoo! Sites	53,929	229,087	31.6
VEVO	45,357	205,838	69.0
Fox Interactive Media	43,127	153,923	13.1
Break Media Network	42,410	167,054	25.9
Microsoft Sites	39,322	219,296	50.7
NBC Universal	32,833	65,059	14.8
Viacom Digital	32,257	76,458	49.5
Turner Network	29,776	90,716	24.9

Top U.S. Online Video Properties by Video Ads* Viewed Ranked by Video Ads Viewed August 2010 Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations Source: comScore Video Metrix
Property	Video Ads (000)	Frequency (Ads per Viewer)	% Reach Total U.S. Population
Total Internet : Total Audience	3,811,351	28.3	45.1
Hulu	789,859	30.2	8.8
BrightRoll Video Network**	468,545	7.2	21.9
Tremor Media Video Network**	441,678	6.9	21.4
Microsoft Sites	233,949	8.8	8.9
Google Sites	216,607	4.5	16.1
Break Media Network	204,360	5.4	12.6
Crosspoint Media**	191,366	7.0	9.2
SpotXchange Video Ad Network**	172,263	5.1	11.3
CBS Interactive	170,242	6.5	8.8
BBE**	160,603	4.8	11.2

*Video ads include streaming-video advertising only and do not include other types of video monetization, such as overlays, branded players, matching banner ads, homepage ads, etc.
**Indicates video ad network/server

Special Announcement: Cancellations/Postponements in UB Work

My mother died recently after a long fight with cancer. The family will wake her on Sunday and bury her on Monday afternoon. Obviously I will not have "office hours" Sunday afternoon, and I will cancel Monday's class.

Additionally, I am changing the deadline for the slide presentation from Oct. 5 to Oct. 8, this coming Friday.

I will see you on Wednesday. Should you have questions, ask them during class. In that way, each of us has an opportunity to learn more.

Online Boston Globe Now Costs You

ClickZ reports that the Boston Globe is dividing up its media empire, transforming its Boston.com, which is a digital version of the Globe today, into  a shopping/classieds/social media site. Meanwhile it will launch BostonGlobe.com, which will have the serious news from the world of business, politics, sports, finance, and the arts, and hide it behind a paywall at BostonGlobe.com. Subscribers to the print edition also could access BostonGlobe.com at no additional charge. These companies are owned by The New York Times, which will charge for online reading of some New York Times content in 2011, following the example of the Wall Street Journal.

What is the significance to marketers? What becomes more valuable to a marketer--a website that allows  any individual to visit or a website that allows only individuals who are willing to pay to gain access to the site?

Ads Need to Engage Effectively, Says Study

"Consumers are spending a growing amount of time on the web, but this doesn't mean they are always accepting of ads. Carefully considering the best times to try to engage internet users with ads may help businesses improve their digital marketing initiatives, according to a new study from Yahoo," says a post from RICG.

Ford's Digital Program Takes a Musical Direction

"Ford, Internet radio leader Pandora and artists Jewel and John Legend are matching up to launch an integrated digital marketing campaign that enhances the Pandora user experience and benefits charities. The fourth-quarter campaign marks a transition in Ford's digital advertising strategy, focusing on working with digital content creators upstream to integrate Ford products and services into their medium rather than pushing out company-generated ads that interrupt content." That last sentence is common in the business world. What does it mean? Rather than running an ad between songs on the radio, Ford is attempting to create ads or product placements that are a "part" of the musician's presentations.

GM Putting Billions Online

"General Motors is leading the auto industry in shifting their traditional advertising campaigns to online marketing. The third-largest advertiser will spend half of their $3 billion advertising budget online. They give it 3 years to get there. Last year GM spent $197 million online," reports an entry on MarketingPilgrim. The story also reports on how much the  auto industry in general is spending for online marketing. Good source for the long report if you want to write about the use of Internet marketing by GM or the American automobile industry. One small drawback: The site posted the story two years ago.

Local Advertisers Going Digital

MarketingPilgrim is reporting that local advertisers, such as retail operations, are turning increasingly to digital marketing to drum up business.

Facebook's Thumbs Up Mean What?

"Facebook has been collecting thumbs up on everything from Levi's black denim leggings to Sarah Palin videos since April. But where do all those clicks of approval go? And when are brands going to benefit?" asks AdAge.

Advertising on Twitter an Experiment

The WSJonline reports that advertisers have mixed reactions to their ad campaigns on Twitter. They had expected to take advantage of Twitter's popularity,  as did Twitter. The social network had signed on "30 big-name brands, including Coca-Cola Co., Virgin America and Starbucks Corp., to test [advertising on Twitter]. Some marketers say that early results are promising but that advertising on Twitter remains an experiment." (You will need a subscription to the WSJ to read the rest or you can access the publication through the school's data base.)

comScore Ranks Top 50 US Websites

comScore Top 50 Properties (U.S.) August 2010 Total U.S. – Home, Work and University Locations Source: comScore Media Metrix
Rank	Property	Unique Visitors (000)	Rank	Property	Unique Visitors (000)
Total Internet Audience (000): 212616
1	Yahoo! Sites	179002	26	iVillage.com: The Womens Network	35289
2	Google Sites	178782	27	Gannett Sites	34923
3	Microsoft Sites	165271	28	Technorati Media	34818
4	Facebook	148048	29	Federated Media Publishing	34562
5	AOL, Inc.	107165	30	WeatherBug Property	33424
6	Glam Media	97948	31	Disney Online	31046
7	Ask Network	88281	32	Break Media Network	30965
8	Turner Network	84541	33	Verizon Communications	30665
9	Viacom Digital	81456	34	AT&T Interactive Network	30028
10	Fox Interactive Media	80210	35	Superpages.com Network	29019
11	Amazon Sites	79188	36	Expedia Inc	28334
12	CBS Interactive	79062	37	Target Corporation	27856
13	Wikimedia Foundation Sites	73685	38	Tribune Interactive	27811
14	eBay	69500	39	YellowBook Network	27217
15	Apple Inc.	69383	40	Photobucket.com LLC	26437
16	New York Times Digital	68901	41	YellowBook Network	27940
17	Demand Media	58798	42	The Washington Post	27711
18	craigslist, inc.	53400	43	Photobucket.com LLC	27396
19	VEVO	49386	44	ESPN	27197
20	Comcast Corporation	44106	45	Warner Music	27151
21	Answers.com Sites	41254	46	Everyday Health	26645
22	NetShelter Technology Media	40584	47	WorldNow Sites	25630
23	Weather Channel, The	39074	48	NBC Universal	25357
24	Wal-Mart	36683	49	Bank of America	24986
25	Adobe Sites	35345	50	Twitter	24798