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Curiosity Stop: The Social Innovation Roundup
February 2016
CURIOSITY STOPAfter the sell-out success of Innovate or Die at last
year’s Social Media Week, we're bringing Curiosity Stop: Innovate or Die back to London with a bang on
Tuesday 9th February.
In the fast-paced world of marketing, standing still is the same as going backwards - innovation is a
necessity, not a choice. This session will give you practical advice on how to innovate, or die (let’s shoot
for the former).
Want to see the Curiosity Stop come to life, while tucking into free beer and pizza? Get your ticket here.
We’ll see you at 5.30pm!
Curiosity Stop >February
"Anyone can make the simple complicated. Creativity is making the complicated simple." - Charles Mingus
This month's Curiosity Stop highlights several social trends, from doing social good and crowdsourcing anonymous advice, to the bolting on of additional
functionality to existing platforms and combating cyberbullying.
It struck me that at the core of this month's innovations is the attempt to tackle a complicated task, or a few, with one simple application. And, if there is never
another mass platform like Facebook, how we need to then have a holistic vision for how suites of apps will be used together by people and how that can deliver
us insights into their behavior.
Think of it this way: your mobile device is your social platform, and the apps that you download to it, is the network that you create specifically for you and
reflects your personal social identity. Understanding the relationships between people and what apps they use (like what causes they support, or what lifestyle trends they follow), will help us better understand people's behaviors and how
to better convey our messages in the future.
Greg EckelmanHead of Strategy, New York, We Are Social
@PunkpostCo is here to make handw
Trend 1: Conscious Community
Western society is becoming more conscious of the effects of our actions on the world around us. We’re now well informed about sweatshops and human rights abuses in the supply chain, which creates a collective feeling of guilt. Online groups are forming around interests that actually do something good. This isn’t hot air, but action.
Give your heart away on @Tinder, as part of its organ donor campaign with the NHS.
Conscious Community >Tinder x NHS
What’s it all about?
Folks come to Tinder find love and… well, I’ll leave the rest up to your imagination. What you might not expect, while indulging in a swiping session, is to be asked if you’d like to donate your organs.
Tinder partnered with the NHS to encourage users to sign up to the organ donor list. If you were to swipe right on a celebrity Tinderer like Jade Jones, you’d receive the following message: “If only it was that easy for those in need of a life-saving organ to find a match." Gulp.
The bigger picture
Platform ‘hacks’ are as old as social media itself. This clever interpretation of finding a ‘match’ shows that hijacking a platform requires more thought than simply using it for a different purpose than it was intended.
CLICK TO TWEET:
@PunkpostCo is here to make handw
Trend 2: Social Status Seekers
Seeking Social status isn’t new, but the technology enabling this behaviour is.
Would you trust a stranger (or twelve) to take care of your love life? Time to download @nattr_app.
Social Status Seekers >Nattr
What’s it all about?
Ever painstakingly crafted a text to a prospective partner, only to run it past your BFF in case you sound a bit... keen/horny/mad? We’ve all been there.
Nattr is the cyber equivalent of having all your mates sat round you in the pub, telling you exactly what to say to the hot guy/girl you met last week. Except instead of friends, it’s complete strangers. And there’s no pub. Who’s in?
The bigger picture
Crowdsourcing opinions from the web is nothing new - forums and noticeboards were one of the web’s original platforms. Now Nattr has gamified the same process. CLICK TO TWEET:
3: On The Horizon
These final innovations don’t fit neatly into our trends (dammit), but we reckon they are worth a mention. Successful innovations create expectation, so we’ll be keeping a keen eye on them. Watch this space - if they turn into a wider trend, you’ll be the first to know.
On The Horizon >Uber on Messenger
What’s it all about?
Uber has partnered with Facebook Messenger to allow users to hail taxis directly from the messaging app. There’s no need to download the Uber app separately.
It also means that you can order and pay for your cab in the same place you organise a night out with your mates. What a breeze! Unless someone gets drunk and pukes in the Uber, that is.
The bigger picture
Facebook is pivoting its messenger platform any way it can to try and drive revenue. Its early attempts to let Messenger make sweet love with the other apps on your phone had a mixed response. Now it’s betting on chat bots and chatty taxi drivers to drive enterprise revenue.
CLICK TO TWEET:
You can now book your @Uber on Messenger. Soon you won’t have to leave Facebook. EVER!!!
Netflix and chill* from opposite sides of the world, thanks to Netflix Party. *The chill bit might take practice.
On The Horizon >Netflix Party
What’s it all about?
Binge-watching is an experience best shared. No-one feels good about a solo Netflix and chill, do they?
Netflix Party is a Chrome extension which allows you to watch shows remotely with your squad. It synchronizes the playback (so no spoilers) and includes a group chat, for all those OMG moments.
The bigger picture
Experiences are more visceral when they are shared. Observing reactions similar to your own reaffirms your feeling of security and connection to the tribe.
CLICK TO TWEET:
On The Horizon >Crowdmix
What’s it all about?
Crowdmix is a yet-to-be-launched social app, dedicated entirely to music.
Upon downloading the app, you’ll be greeted with a feed of posts by brands and other users, including major artists and celebrities. You can even join specific ‘crowds’ of like-minded people… exciting news for all you death metal slash dubstep fans out there.
The bigger picture
Crowdmix is one of the most eagerly awaited launches in UK startup history. But will it actually work? Incorporating brands into the big social networks was an afterthought. Could the inclusion of advertisers clip Crowdmix’s wings in those all-important early days?
CLICK TO TWEET:
Meet @crowdmix, the Instagram of the music world. That's what they're telling brands, anyway...
On The Horizon >SafeBeyond
What’s it all about?
SafeBeyond is an app which lets you communicate with your loved ones from beyond the grave. Here’s how it works (stay with me here).
First, you line up texts, photos and videos - these can be general messages or special recordings for birthdays or wedding days. Then, you appoint trustees and heirs. Trustees are in charge of scheduling your messages once you’ve shuffled off this mortal coil. Heirs are the lucky recipients. Now all you have to do is hope the app outlasts you.
The bigger picture
Throughout history we’ve been fixated with cheating death via reincarnation. SafeBeyond dines out on the grim reality that (spoiler alert) we’re not going to be here forever.
CLICK TO TWEET:
Use @Safe_Beyond to let your family know you love them… even after you’ve popped your clogs.
On The Horizon >Tweeting Drones
What’s it all about?
Want the inside bird scoop? Twitter has applied for a patent for a tweeting drone, which posts photos and videos taken itself.
The patent’s got the innovation rumour mill churning, as it mentions that the drone could be controlled by likes and RTs. Watch those skies (and your Twitter feed), folks.
The bigger picture
It’s not buildings and overhead wires that drones need to watch out for - but legislation. With every drone that plummets out of the sky and into a large crowd a new line of red tape will clip the wings of the burgeoning drone industry.
CLICK TO TWEET:
A little bird told us that there might be a tweeting drone on the way… Mind. Blown.
Watch what you say online. It might be coming soon to a billboard near you.
On The Horizon >Virtual racism, real consequences
What’s it all about?
An unfortunate consequence of the virtual world we live in is that bullying has gone cyber. Now a nonprofit group in Brazil is shaming keyboard warriors into giving up their trolling habit. The Criola group uses Facebook’s location tag to find where those guilty of racist online comments live. It then put up billboards next to the offenders’ houses, to really drive home the message.
As my mother loves to tell me, “if you can’t think of anything nice to tweet, don’t tweet at all!” Except without the tweet bit. She’s yet to work a mobile phone.
The bigger picture
Social shouldn’t be a standalone marketing discipline, and this campaign shows how outdoor and social can be a powerful combo.
CLICK TO TWEET:
CONSCIOUS COMMUNITYTinder x NHS
SOCIAL STATUS SEEKERSNattr
ON THE HORIZONUber on Messenger
Netflix Party
Crowdmix
SafeBeyond
Tweeting Drones
Virtual racism, real consequences
WE ARE SOCIALWe Are Social is a global agency with offices in five continents
(Antarctica is a little too chilly for our liking).
We deliver world-class creative ideas with forward-thinking brands, and have fun doing it. Our clients include adidas, Google and Netflix.
As an international team of 550+, our passion is people. Our mission is to put social thinking at the centre of marketing.
Trendspotting might get us unnaturally excited, but what really counts is action. If you'd like to speak to We Are Social about how to make innovation work for your brand, email us at
WHAT DO YOU THINK?Take our survey here.
