Will Google Users Revolt?

"Over the past six weeks, critics of [Google's privacy change]... have amassed a number of arguments. Google, they say, cannot make this change because it violates a 2011 consent agreement between Google and the Federal Trade Commission regarding privacy. More recently, it has been suggested that Google’s new privacy policy violates EU rules, according to ABC News." That is a portion of the post from Marketing Vox. Read more.

Assessing Ad Campaigns on Facebook to Get Easier

Brafton syas that "a report from TechCrunch suggests that Real-Time Insights may be coming to Facebook, which will help companies assess their social media marketing campaigns more effectively. According to the website, businesses using Facebook will see more rapid and accurate information relating to the amount of users accessing their social media content and the engagement it garners. With the Facebook Marketing Conference set to begin Wednesday, this may be one detail the company unveils at the event, TechCrunch suggests." Read more.

The Other Social Network--YouTube--Drawing Advertisers Big Time

"If you needed a sign of just how audacious YouTube's $100 million experiment in original content is, consider the asking price for advertisers: as much as $62 million for the exclusive...No one has paid that yet. Early deals are in the $5 million to $10 million range,: according to Advertising Age. "A smattering of the nation's biggest marketers have signed on, including Unilever, which is sponsoring "Young Hollywood Network,"...Toyota, which is backing a host of channels targeted at women,...and GM, which signed on last week to sponsor Red Bull's action sports channel and a package of automotive-focused channels. Chrysler, AT&T and Lowes are also appearing" on recently launched channels."  Read more.

Following Viewers, Marketers Turning to Smaller Social Networks

"While Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have been at the top of the social media heap in the US for several years now, new services and relaunched versions of older ones are rapidly gaining popularity among consumers and marketers," according to eMarketer. "One such site is Pinterest, where users and marketers alike can create online “pinboards” that showcase their taste and creativity. "    Read more.

Social Network Ad Revenue Continues Climb

"eMarketer expects global social network ad revenues to climb nearly 50% this year to $7.72 billion, up from $5.2 billion in 2011. Just under half of all revenues will come from a single market, the US." Read more.

Taco Bell Gets Its Tweeters to Tweet Again

"A just-ended contest from Taco Bell asked Twitter users to compose a tweet with the hashtags #DoritosLocosTacos and #Contest," reports ClickZ. "The Doritos Locos Tacos Hometown Tweet-Off ran from February 16 to 20. It promoted the Doritos Locos taco, which comes in a shell made from Nacho Cheese Doritos Chips and will debut on March 8. The Twitter user whose aptly hashtagged tweet is retweeted the most times wins a hometown visit from the Taco Bell Truck for an early taste. According to its Twitter profile, the Taco Bell Truck drives around the country handing out free tacos. Tressie Lieberman, director of digital marketing for Taco Bell, says it first started touring in 2009. @TacoBellTruck has 14,000 followers." Read more.

New Software Enables Fast Response to Real World for Advertisers

"Adobe announced the availability of Primetime Highlights, a web-based video clip editor designed for the creation of live video clips to be used for online advertising nearly instantaneously," reports ClickZ. "Using the tool, video publishers can quickly grab a clip, such as a great sports play, and then publish it along with a targeted ad. Clips can be delivered via an Adobe-provided video player within an existing mobile application or embedded in a website." What does this mean? A publisher like ESPN, along with an advertiser, could have posted the winning shot from last night's NBA All-Star game along side a particular advertisement. Read more.

Facebook Launching New Ad Format--More Advertiser Friendly

"Facebook will release a new, upgraded ad product on February 29, the company has confirmed to Direct Marketing News. The social network is expected to introduce these new ad products at the fMC event for marketers. According to a leaked presentation posted on Scribd by Peter Corbett of ad agency iStrategyLabs and later obtained by technology website GigaOm as well as numerous other media reports, the upgraded Premium Ads will allow brands to originate their Facebook ads from the company page, enabling a larger-format and more prominent placement of "likes" and comments." Read more.

Knick Phenom Lin Drives Facebook Likes

"When speaking about what their number of Facebook likes/fans means, marketers sometimes joke about giving Facebook a million dollars to get a million fans. Well to get a half million new Facebook fans in the last two weeks, all the New York Knicks had to do was give Jeremy Lin the basketball," according to ClickZ. "The NBA franchise on Friday disclosed that the sports phenom - dubbed "Linsanity" by newspaper writers - has been not only a dynamo on the court but in the digital realm as well. The 23 year old athlete has been the spark behind the team going from Facebook 1.4 million fans/likes earlier this month to its current 1.95 million." Read more.

Smartphones Playing Larger Role in Internet Marketing

"Market research firm comScore recently released its 2012 Mobile Future in Focus report, which suggests that smartphone use means businesses must ensure their web presence is optimized for mobile access and that they update their content marketing campaigns frequently enough to appeal to constant mobile searches," reports Brafton News. "ComScore reports that 42 percent of American mobile phone owners use smartphones. Most of these users take full advantage of the devices, which includes access to the web. Developing a site that allows on-the-go visitors full access to website content and ecommerce features will improve a brand's reputation and allow for more conversion opportunities." Read more.

Google Heightens Concerns about Privacy

"We're less than one week from the launch of Google's new privacy policy taking effect, but the controversial new plan from Google has already become a major point of discussion on the web. As a result, the internet marketing community saw developments that could impact search marketing campaigns this week when lawmakers took action to discuss the policy with Google." Read more from Brafton News. You can also read about states' attorneys general meeting with Google over privacy.

How Companies Can Manage Digital Data about Customers

"The amount of data we can collect from digital interactions by consumers is staggering, and making sense of it can seem daunting. This needn't be, though. You simply have to know which data are most relevant and how best to use them.

With that in mind, here's a quick primer on how to use data to drive your digital strategy," reports Advertising Age. "First-party, web-based data (the information you can learn about visitors to your sites) is often the most accessible and valuable. Visitors are generating useful signals with every action they take. These data sets belong to you, meaning you don't need to pay third parties to use them and you may use them as fully as the rights you've secured through your user terms." Read more.

Tweet Launches Kellogg Breakfast Cereal

"Twitter has done many things but we think this may be the first time a random tweet has inspired a new cereal brand. UK rocker Tim Burgess (frontman of The Charlatans) tweeted jokingly that he would love to launch a cereal called 'Totes Amazeballs' (slang for totally amazing), pretending Kellogg was interested," according to Creativity Online. "Kellogg picked up on the tweet…and created the product. As Burgess told NME.com, the product tastes something like Rocky Road ice cream, and he imagined it to be the kind of treat you'd want to eat to kill your hangover, especially the kind you get at music fests." Read more.

Music for Food, a United Biscuit Campaign

"UK food company United Biscuits is linking its various snack brands with music in a tie-up with Universal Music, Snacktracks. It's running an on-pack promotion through Wax Communications that gives consumers the opportunity to download more than 100, 000 songs from the Universal Music catalog," notes Creativity Online. "The promotion runs across 30 million packs of UB snack brands Hula Hoops, Mini Cheddars, Nik Naks, Skips, Discos and Wheat Crunchies. On the website, Snacktracks.co.uk, consumers can download a track for each pack they buy, having registered. There are also 'playlists' for each brand, matched to its brand personality( for example, the Mini Cheddars' playlist features 'absolute classics'.)" Read more.

Mobile Phone Market More of an Opportunity for Marketers

"'2011 proved to be a groundbreaking year for the mobile industry, with smartphones hitting the mainstream, tablets emerging as a formidable fourth screen, and consumers increasingly integrating mobile behaviors into their lifestyles. As the industry continues to innovate and more consumers look to multiple devices and platforms to consume digital media, we expect the mobile and connected device landscape to be shaken up even further in 2012,' said Mark Donovan, comScore Senior Vice President of Mobile. 'As mobile channels present a more personal, social, and ubiquitous experience to consumers, advertisers and publishers have an opportunity to better engage target audiences, given an understanding of how to connect and leverage the unique characteristics of these emerging platforms.'" Read more. For a copy of the report, click this link.

Facebook Ad Revenue to Exceed $5 Billion in 2012

"eMarketer estimates Facebook's worldwide ad revenues will soar more than 60% this year to exceed $5 billion. Just over half of those dollars will come from the US, where Facebook will account for 6.5% of all online ad spending." Read more.

Republican Presidential Hopefuls Turn to Microtargeted Ads

"Online Data Helping Campaigns Customize Ads." That was a headline in today's New York Times. Here's a bit of the story:

Political campaigns, which have borrowed tricks from Madison Avenue for decades, are now fully engaged on the latest technological frontier in advertising: aiming specific ads at potential supporters based on where they live, the Web sites they visit and their voting records. 

Read more.

Marketers Go from Tracking Consumers to Each Other

"Yesmail Interactive has launched a tool that lets marketers track their competitors and follow new campaigns in real time. The platform, called Yesmail Market Intelligence, allows marketers who join to follow the digital marketing activity of other brands, from the times they deploy email blasts to the number of views their YouTube channel received the previous week," eports Digital Marketing News. "Yesmail, an Infogroup company, draws the data from publicly available sources and offers them to Market Intelligence members in a centralized, more easily navigable format." Read more.

AmEx Users Get to Run Promotional Ads to 300 Mil Users

"Twitter will soon be offering ads to small- and medium-sized businesses, and American Express cardmembers will get early access to it, the companies said on Feb. 17. The new self-service ads, which are scheduled to launch in late March, will allow small businesses to run their own promotional campaigns and access Twitter's more than 300 million users," says Direct Marketing News. "Through a partnership with the social media company, American Express has arranged it so that its cardmembers and merchants will be the first to try the new platform. American Express will give $100 in free Twitter advertising to the first 10,000 enterprise customers that register at ads.twitter.com/amex." Read more.

Sunday's Grammy's Helps with Marketing--Sort Of!

"Sunday night's Grammy Awards crept into web conversation on Monday morning, dominating search and social trends just as the Super Bowl did one week ago," notes Brafton."Based on data from Google trends, "grammys 2012" was among the most frequently searched terms throughout Monday, with the awards show accounting for nine of the 10 most popular search terms overall. As is the case with most other major events, content marketing campaigns that leveraged this topic likely saw increased interest from their readers. Moreover, social media marketing likely benefited from the Grammys as well, with the event trending late Sunday and into Monday morning. Pop star Adele was one of the most frequently discussed topics." Read more.

The Mobile Ad Apocalypse Approaches

"All advertising imposes costs on the consumer. For example, TV commercials interrupt shows, outdoor ads sometimes obscure or distract from prettier views, and the sheer weight of the ad pages in the September issue of Vogue has undoubtedly caused a fair number of arm strains and Prada bag collapses over the years. But because of consumers' close relationships with their mobile devices, the consumer costs of mobile advertising may be more visible and less tolerated than those of other media," observes a ClickZ post. "The industry is only beginning to pay attention to the consumer costs of mobile advertising, and if it doesn't proactively address these, there's at least a chance that a mobile ad apocalypse could occur." Read more.

Zatarain's Parties Socially for Mardi Gras

"As Fat Tuesday approaches, New Orleans-based Zatarain's is plumping up its digital and social media marketing efforts," notes ClickZ. "Mardi Gras is a big deal for the big easy food brand, and it's using Facebook, Twitter, Pandora, and a "Krewe" of bloggers to help revelers get in the spirit this all-important weekend." Read more.

Predicting if Someone Is Pregnant

"Andrew Pole had just started working as a statistician for Target in 2002, when two colleagues from the marketing department stopped by his desk to ask an odd question: 'If we wanted to figure out if a customer is pregnant, even if she didn’t want us to know, can you do that?'" Read the rest of the New York Times article to find out if Pole could.

Newspapers Get Readers Online

"Online news sites have long won the battle to get readers to move online –- although the question of whether readers should pay for that online content is another question," says Marketing Vox. "Perhaps an issue even more pertinent to publishers’ long time survival is when the advertisers will follow. Pew’s Project for Excellent in Journalism reports that online news sites are finding it difficult to convince advertisers to move from their traditional platforms to online outlets. One in five ads on news websites are house ads." Read more.

MySpace Finds New Growth

"MySpace's one-million growth in users this past month has not only brought attention to the site but also to one of its forthcoming initiatives — MySpace TV.  Announced last month, it will let artists and fans share and discover content," according to a Marketing Vox post. "Initial channels on MySpace TV will be music-focused, using MySpace’s music rights and leading library of 100,000 music videos and 42 million songs. Eventually, though, it will encompass movies, news, sports and reality channels." Read more.

Earlier this week Marketing Vox reported:  "MySpace, which was left for dead last year when Specific Media bought the site from News Corp., has returned to the headlines. Monday it announced that it had added one million new members since December with new signups going from zero to 40,000 per day." Read more.

Marketers Change as US Media Consumtion Habits Change

In class yesterday we discussed many matters. They frequently surrounded this point discussed in eMarketer a few days ago:

Changes in US media consumption habits have brands reevaluating their multichannel marketing programs. Marketers continue to combine channels with the purpose of achieving maximum reach, but as multiple digital devices become staples of US daily life, traditional media such as TV, print and radio are no longer the only channels offering marketers mass exposure. Read more.

Advertising Locally on the Internet

Neustar discusses five ways that a marketer can make her/his "local" advertising program more effective. In other words, small, local businesses can benefit from Internet marketing. Read more.

Consumers' Concerns about Privacy Loom over Marketers

"Consumer concerns regarding online privacy have been well documented by the media," eMarketer reports. "But brands, publishers, advertisers and solution providers that haven't been listening carefully and addressing consumer worries may soon find themselves at odds with their key internet audiences." Read more. Remember: In this class you have evolved into a marketer. If you "like" this issue, then think of it as a marketer--not as a consumer.

Online Advertising Stumbling over Itself

"comScore has released its 2012 U.S. Digital Future in Focus report," according to comScore. "This annual report examines how the prevailing trends in social media, search, online video, digital advertising, mobile and e-commerce defining the current marketplace and what these trends mean for the year ahead. “It’s no secret that the online advertising industry has long held the promise of being the most measureable of all media,” writes comScore. Sill, the complex online advertising ecosystem makes validation of delivery difficult. In preparation for this year’s Focus report, comScore conducted a U.S.-based Charter Study in December 2011 involving 12 national brands, 3,000 placements, 381,000 site domains and 1.7 billion ad impressions." Read more.

Traditional News Media Doing a "Crummy Job"

"A new study of advertising in news by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism reveals that even the top news websites have little success getting advertisers to move online from traditional platforms," reports Media Buyer Planner. "They are in fact 'doing a crummy job of capitalizing on online advertising’s growth,' as blogger Andrew Beaujon of the Poynter Institute describes. Pew examined 5,381 ads on 22 homepages and landing pages at different news operations. Those operations included 11 newspapers, four magazines, three cable news outlets, three commercial network broadcasts and two online-only outlets (Yahoo News and The Huffington Post)." Read more.

Super Bowl Commercials Integrate with Social Media

"For some, the week began on a high note, celebrating the New York Giants' win over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. Internet marketers likely rejoiced too, but not necessarily because of the game's actual outcome," reports Brafton. "As is tradition, the commercials airing during the game generated substantial conversation on the web, and the integration of social media marketing into some of the campaigns signaled the channel's value to some of the most recognizable brands in the world. On Monday, Brafton highlighted the use of social in some of these campaigns, including Bud Light Platinum's use of the hashtag '#MakeItPlatinum,' which quickly became a trending topic on Twitter. Audi's '#SoLongVampires' achieved similar success after the ad featuring a car with especially bright lights killing a series of vampires became an instant hit." Read more.

What Does Google's New Privacy Mean to Digital Marketing?

"Another projected result is that Google will have a more comprehensive view of your online activity, which it can use to target ads to you," says a ClickZ post. "Many find this disturbing. First techies, then journalists, then politicians started clamoring about how the new policy presents a threat to users' privacy and violates the trust users had placed in Google. Even Microsoft jumped on the bandwagon, with a new ad casting doubt on the purity of Google's intentions and pointing to its own services as a privacy-friendly alternative." Read more.

The Role of Presidential Elections in Digital Marketing

"Presidential elections have served as important catalysts and benchmarks in the slow but steady adoption of digital marketing tactics by political campaigns," according to Ad Age. "The 2004 election represented a breakthrough, as the Dean campaign used emerging social networking tools and communities to generate a potent new stream of donations and to organize and engage supporters. In the 2008 cycle, the Obama campaign took this process to the next level, with a well-tuned digital marketing machine, blending search and display, social and email -- and blew the roof off with record-breaking levels of donations and digital engagement, not to mention a residual digital community the President's political organization continues to mine." Read more.

Vicks Helps Moms Track Flus

"Kaz, manufacturer for the Vicks brand, found an innovative way to target a very specific audience for its new behind-the-ear thermometer — moms and expectant mothers — by leveraging the geolocation abilities of smartphones, demographics data provided by apps and an algorithm created by Google that estimates regional flu activity based on Internet searches," according to Direct Marketing News. "Google aggregated Web searches from 2003 to 2008 with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, and using the location aspect of users' IP addresses, Google devised a formula to estimate regional flu activity based on Internet searches. Using Google's predictive model for the flu as its primary data, Kaz partnered with the third-party ad network Where.com to pinpoint the moms and moms-to-be who would be most interested in the noninvasive temperature-taker by indicating to them that they are in a region where the flu is prevalent, via ads served through a number of apps." Read more.

Google Opening Bids for Ads on Its Mobile Ad Network

"Next week advertising auctions for cost-per-click (CPC) placements on Google’s AdMob mobile ad network will take quality score into consideration," says Marketing Vox. "Specifically: on Wednesday, February 15th, ads will be displayed based on their quality of the ad and the bids of that impression. In addition, Google is removing minimum bids and targeting fees, instead letting the pricing be determined solely by market forces. This is part of Google’s strategy to move AdMob closer to its core AdWords product. Previously, the highest bidder won the impression on AdMob." Read more.

So You Thought Yahoo Was Following in the Footsteps of AOL, Newscape, and Alta Vista--Maybe Not

"Yesterday, Yahoo released out of beta a website that visualizes the traffic to Yahoo properties, letting users customize results...," according to an Ad Age post. "Yahoo hopes to roll out in the next few months that will personalize the content experience on its sites, said Mike Kerns, Yahoo's VP-social and personalization.... The hope, of course, is that a more-personalized experience will increase engagement and, with it, affinity for the Yahoo brand."  Read more.

Its Absurdity Is Its Effectiveness

"Visiting the local park not long ago, Shelley Davies-Carr and her four sons were suddenly surrounded by a gaggle of overexcited teenagers wielding cellphones and taking photographs. 'Oh, my God!' the teenagers shrieked, as only teenagers can. “ ‘"Charlie Bit My Finger!"' ” That's the lead of a New York Times post. "Indeed, it is hard to find anyone in the video-watching world who has not heard of “Charlie Bit My Finger,” a YouTube video featuring tiny Charlie Davies-Carr chomping on his older brother, Harry. Since it was posted in 2007, the 56-second clip of English-accented toddler indignation and infant bliss has been viewed a mind-boggling 417.6 million times, making it the most successful noncommercial video in YouTube history." Read more.

Social Platforms Growing Faster Than Can Be Tracked

"Social platforms are still in their Precambrian era, with new services emerging and consolidating large audiences almost faster than they can be tracked," according to ClickZ. "Meanwhile the social category as a whole is on the cusp of becoming the dominant form of online content, accounting for 16.6 percent of Internet minutes spent as 2011 drew to a close. A wide-ranging report from comScore found that while leader Facebook continues its impressive growth - reaching three out of four U.S. users - relative newcomers like Tumblr, Pinterest, and Google+ are evolving and growing at a steady clip." Read more.

Baby Boomers More Concerned about Data Collection Than Millenials

"Forrester just published survey results intended to answer the questions "Do people care if companies collect their data, and does it affect their decisions about the companies?'" That's the start of an Ad Age post. "The short answer to both questions is, yes.In a survey of 37,000 US and Canadian online adults, we first asked how concerned people were with companies accessing their personal information. More than 70% were concerned about social security numbers and credit cards. Less than half cared about their phone number, and only 19% were concerned about their online reviews. This proves people are at least thoughtful, and distinguish between extremely sensitive information and other information.The second big conclusion is that age matters, and young people are more open. For example, 47% of 55-64 year-olds were concerned about access to their behavioral data, compared to only 33% of those 18-24. Young people were also far more willing to give up information in exchange for discounts." Read more.

Pharmaceutical Brands Do More Digital Marketing

"A much-anticipated Facebook game from Boehringer Ingelheim, makers of Dulcolax, Zantac, and an array of prescription medications, is just one example of how pharma [pharmaceutical] brands are plowing ahead with digital campaigns," reports ClickZ. "Despite hand wringing about a lack of clear regulatory guidance, BI, Pfizer, and others were already breaking new ground before new draft social media guidelines were unveiled by the Food and Drug Administration in December." Read more.

IKEA Enlists "Like" Buddies in New Marketing Campaign

"The 'Bring Your Own Friends' campaign from IKEA USA gave back to its customers while at the same time raised money for charity. Who can beat that? Plus, IKEA cleverly enlisted its own Facebook fans base to do some of the heavy marketing lifting for them," reports Direct Marketing News. "The way it worked was simple: IKEA told its more than 430,000 Facebook fans to invite buddies to bring along and enjoy a full day of free in-store meals, massages, gift card giveaways, discounts and other perks for one blowout shopping day in mid-January at IKEA stores nationwide." Read more.

Prez Returns to Online Advertising in Re-Election Bid

"Online ad spending by Obama for America and the Democratic National Committee reached more than $7 million in 2011," according to a CiickZ post. "From March through December, OFA alone bought more than $5 million worth of online ads, according to Federal Election Commission reports analyzed by ClickZ Politics. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama's reelection camp only recently began running television spots, reportedly making a relatively small national buy aimed at building his supporter list, and later pushing an economy and energy policy themed message to battleground states." Read more.

What Makes for a Good Social Media Campaign

"Ad Age and Creativity's latest trend report explores what it takes for brands to 'do good Facebook,'" and so starts the Ad Age post. "We gathered a roundtable of seasoned creatives, including Mr. Benjamin, a former CP&B co-CCO who helped steer notable Facebook campaigns such as Burger King's 'Whopper Sacrifice.' We were joined by his former Crispin colleague Paul Aaron, now digital executive creative director at Amalgamated; Tool's Jason Zada, EVB co-founder turned director, who created one of the most viral Facebook efforts of last year in 'Take This Lollipop'; Pereira & O'Dell Creative Director Jaime Robinson, who worked on the successful Intel-Toshiba 'Inside' social film; Team Detroit ECD Scott Lange, who oversaw Ford's 'Doug' social-media puppet effort; and Jung Von Matt Limmat's Livio Dainese, creative director on Graubunden Tourism's 'Obermutten Goes Global,' which earned a tiny Swiss town more Facebook action than the fan pages of Justin Beiber and Lady Gaga.If you don't know their work, you should. All of them have successfully navigated the social-media platform and created Facebook campaigns that people actually cared about." Read and see more (video).

Judging Celebs on Their Facebook Covers

"Securing the services of a supermodel to wear minimal clothing is standard for a Super Bowl advertiser, but hiring her based on her social-media credentials is a sign of the time," notes Advertising Age. "To help make its spot go viral, Kia Motors chose Adriana Lima, Motley Crue and MMA fighter Chuck Liddell to appear in its ad largely on the basis of their social graphs and the perceived power of their fan bases. In the ad, the Sandman pours too much sand in the eyes of a sleeping man and makes his dream world a manifestation of his deepest desires to drive around a raceway and be cheered on by legions by bikini-clad women." Read more.

See Growth of Internet Marketing during the Next Five Years

Source: eMarketer, 2012

n

Homework Help

Some individuals find it helpful to talk out their thoughts.

You can do that in Monday's class. Bring in your thesis for the letter assignment. I will critique it. I will not say, "This stinks," or make a comment remotely close to that.

I will show you how to improve it, what details may support it, and if you wrote a conclusion rather than a thesis. If you wrote a conclusion, I will attempt to help you "back up" your thinking until you finally have a thesis.

I have done this in the past. The students who participate feel better about what they are thinking and usually find creating their assignments somewhat easier.

I look forward to seeing your theses on Monday.

By the way, you can also review them with me on Sunday between three and five. As always, I will be sitting in the library's coffee shop at that time, my office hours.

Millenials--Your Generation--Drive Digital Content

In Monday's class, I mentioned that your generation had $170 billion [see this blog posting] in purchasing power, that producers gear websites, movies, publications, books, and tv shows to your generation, and as a consequence, that your generation rules. Now your generation will dictate marketing content.

"In a few short years, millennials—consumers currently ages 18 to 34—will account for a sizeable portion of US purchase decision-makers. Yet Bazaarvoice found these digital natives are already using and creating online content to recommend or dissuade friends, family and anonymous site-visitors from a brand, product or service," reports eMarketer. "Compared to their older counterparts, baby boomers, millennial internet users showed a greater reliance on anonymous recommendations and reviews when making purchase decisions." Read more.

Now your generation does have large education loans, and they are coming of age during one of the most difficult economic times in the past 80 years. Yet your number--more than 85 million, 10 million more than the baby boomer generation (mine)--could set this nation in an entirely new economic direction, especially when you start building families. Doubt that. Read this.

Facebook Earned More Than $3B in Ad Rev in 2011

"Facebook's 2011 advertising revenues were $3.1 billion, up 69 percent from the year before, according to the Menlo Park, CA-based firm's S-1 filing today for its initial public offering. Facebook, which has increased its ad units per page from four to seven in the last two years, appears to have benefited greatly from those particular moves," notes ClickZ. "According to the filing, the primary reason for the jump in ad revenue was a 42 percent lift in the number of ads delivered, as well as an 18 percent hike in the average price per ad delivered." Read more.

WSJ Joins the Social Media Video Rush on YouTube

Media Buyer Planner reports that "the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) ...launched its dedicated YouTube channel, reports Investors Business Daily. First among its advertisers visible to YouTube viewers: the Ron Paul campaign (with a banner ad and 13-minute streaming infomercial), the United Arab Emirates and Boeing." Read more.

Marketers Looking to Use More Internet Marketing in 2012

"A report from Valpak and the Cox Media Group found that businesses are optimistic about 2012, and improved internet marketing is the cause. According to the study, companies believe that the web provides the best opportunities to boost sales, with search engine optimization coming out on top," says a post on Brafton News. "Sixty-seven percent [of marketers responding to the survey] report that they will center their efforts around SEO, ensuring that their website content is developed with keywords and the behavior of their target audience....Social media marketing will be a major component of campaigns for 57 percent of businesses." Read more.

Insurance Companies Spending More on Internet Marketing

"Healthcare reform and signs of economic recovery have insurance marketers retooling their direct marketing efforts to drive relevant messaging to consumers and prospects. Marketers are putting a premium on offering personalized, accurate content to different consumer demographics, while balancing privacy concerns," according to Direct Marketing News. "While many marketers have had to trim their budgets in recent years, the insurance industry has witnessed steady spending growth over the past few years. During the first three quarters of 2011, insurance television advertising spending increased 10% and Internet advertising spending increased 40% compared to the same period in 2010, according to Kantar Media." Read more.