Sunday, 15 December 2013

say what ? social media powered cars ?!

Mind Drive was a digital activism campaign that was designed to fight a cause in a positive way.         I was moved after watching this clip which shows troubled kids coming together to build a car & improve their ideas of being in the work force.
The car is ultimately powered by face book likes, tweets, shares and re tweets which all convert to wattage.

It raises awareness in education, fuel alternatives and what you can do when you put your mind to it.




An ABC television series, which I became completely hooked on, that really challenged my thoughts on marketing and made me question why I was studying a marketing degree was the series ‘the checkout’.


www.abc.net.au


It’s a satirical show for the everyday person covering consumer affairs by analysing products and ads on tv and then giving you the real research and results on what they ‘claim’ to do.

Now that I’ve learnt what culture jamming actually means I think this is a brilliant example of it..

Check out their clips below..




I remember the 1st moment when I saw anything to do with Kony 2012, I was sitting in my car waiting to go into an appointment and randomly checked the ol’ facebook to kill some time. Friends had ‘liked’ the you tube Kony Video and or commented on it  - on average every 2nd post was related which instantly made me want to watch the clip to see what all the fuss was about.


http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/File:Pow.gif


As it did many people, it moved me. What followed was a series of discussions with friends, work colleagues and family with questions relating to it such as; is this real?  Is Joseph Kony real? Who is this narrator? 


www.dailymail.co.uk



This example of digital activism had gone viral on line and soon the world was talking about.  

Looking back at the reactions I can now differentiate who the optimists, pessimists and persistent were as discussed in the paper by Svitanides and Shah.

 The optimists rejoicing in the fact that this political issue was able to be communicated to everyone and that it was making a huge difference to everyday people & the world. The pessimists on the other hand were sceptical and looked at it as another attention seeking, conspiracy that wasn’t to be trusted as it had come through a social media platform. Then there were the persistent who didn’t think too much of it but thought a good change would happen from it but did not like the fact that it was coming to us through face book. 


see you next week... Daniela 





References

Saturday, 7 December 2013

twit tering..


Yes, yes we all know how much celebrities LOVE to advertise, promote & feud on Twitter but how much do we know about all the other truly positive aspects that Twitter can do for us?

* Instant updated broadcasts from survivors during a disaster.
* Instant updated class information on University grounds.
* Instant updated product information from a supplier to a customer.

And just because I’m studying a business marketing degree I am going to throw in the fact that its also one of the best tools to promote and increase brand awareness. 

FACT – Twitter is fast, faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.                                                                                              Look, up in the sky ! It’s a bird, well.. yes it is a bird its Twitter !

https://www.iconfinder.com/icons/52981/superman_twitter_icon    


Howard Rheingold's view of virtual communities is similar to that of the Twitter community, words, emotions and knowledge are shared out between one another, friends are found and lost, people gossip, flirt, play games. You are interacting with each other but your ‘bodies are being left behind’; you can’t touch or kiss anyone. However it is still attractive to us as well as addictive.

http://www.neesayer.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/social-network-links_large.jpg



Another theorist Henry Jenkins believes that 'Participatory Culture' can be seen throughout blogging, fan communities and gamers for etc. What they have in common is that they all support an environment, much like Twitter communities. The # hashtag that you use to search on Twitter allows you to find the community you are looking for..

This clip shows a quick overview on how to find hidden Twitter communities.


But how long will Twitter last for? It has grown to such a worldwide phenomenon in a small space of time, with myself even toying with the idea of starting an account for my own personal use and curiosities, but am I just jumping on the bandwagon?  
I like the fact that Twitter has the power to communicate important updates relating to relevant stories happening everyday, but am turned off by how indulgent celebrities are with it & how they manipulate and use Twitter.



In saying that however I am sure some celebrities also market themselves as a brand and are therefore just using a communication tool to advertise, and promote their brand awareness to you and I as any other business would.  


#this bird is tweeting out.
Daniela 



References & further reading