This is what the weather was like

What we ate

We didn’t sleep

Digital Lab SXSW 2011 Trends

Presented by: @jonathanvu

@melanieswong @anarjoshi

March 25, 2011

“The reason people love their parents is because they loved you first. Brand should consider the metaphor and give to

their customers before asking things from them”

- Gary Vaynerchuk, Author/Entrepreneur

What are we going to talk about

Convergence of Offline/Online Advertising Transmedia Gamification

Evolution of Purchase Decisions Emergence of Micro-communities

Actionable Analytics

#Convergence of Advertising

“The mobile phone acts as a cursor that connect the physical and digital worlds together”

- Marissa Mayer, Google VP Consumer Products

What it means for innovation

The convergence of offline and online user experience has been evolving for years, but now we have hit a critical

mass, where things that were first characterized as trends have become integral in our daily lives

Source: Christina White/SapientNitro. “Thin Is In: The Future of Digital Wallets”. SXSWi 2011

What it means for us

There is no longer a difference between an online and offline identity, relationship, and experience

We need to find opportunities to leverage this convergence by creating an experience that can provide utility aligned

with the reality of today’s consumer

#Transmedia

“Transmedia is inherently about creating culture”

- James Milward, Secret Location Producer

What it means for innovation

Transmedia is about bringing storytelling to multiple platforms Using the right platform to extend the story

It’s not a “marketing gimmick” Good marketers know how to tell good stories

Source: Barbara Vance. “Transmedia Storytelling”. SXSWi 2011

What it means for us

Story is the most important

The key is to connect the story with valuable content and have it make sense to be in multiple platforms – cannot make a commercial ‘just

because’ It should make sense to have a presence online vs. TV spot

#Gamification

“The last decade was the decade of the social layer, now the game layer is coming”

-Seth Priebatsch, SCVNGR Chief Ninja

What it means for innovation

Gaming started as something only niche audiences understood, but location-based services took game

mechanics mainstream

The game layer is being integrated in companies today, like Groupon turning coupons and promotions into a

challenge

Game User Journey

Come and Try It

Bring Friends

Come Back

We can integrate game mechanics into work we do to increase user engagement and loyalty

Game design patterns are flexible and can be tested, measured, and optimized to create the right type of

action

We should be careful when designing rewards as they have become so prevalent that users expect them and only

engage when there is high pay-off

What it means for us

Evolution of #PurchaseDrivers

“Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003”

- Eric Schmidt, Google CEO

What it means for innovation

We need to help consumers through the clutter, by offering relevant content in the right context

Curate user experiences based on preferences, location, and influencers in their networks

Type of Content

Personal Social Global

What it means for us

Knowing that consumers are inundated by content, we have to engage with consumers in

the right context and provide a real utility

The right context can be created by tapping into their preferences, location, and influencers

networks

Emergence of #Micro-communities

“Mainstream is nothing anymore. Mainstream is whatever you are interested in.”

- Felicia Day, Writer/Actress of web series The Guild

Source: Paul Adams/Google “The Real Life Social Network V2”

Source: Paul Adams/Google “The Real Life Social Network V2”

What it means for innovation

There is a recent boom in startups exploring concepts related to small groups of friends and

interests to enable consumers to connect in more meaningful ways

Micro-communities

Social Commerce

What it means for us

For our brands, we should look to connect with consumers around specific interests

Adding an authentic social good layer doesn’t have to be partnering with a non-profit – it can be

something more core to your brand and users

#Analytics

“Radical innovation requires both evidence and intuition: evidence to become informed, and intuition to inspire us

in imagining and creating new and better possibilities.”

-Jane Fulton Suri, IDEO Partner and CD

What it means for innovation

Data can paralyze creativity and prevent companies from making any daring decisions

But, they need it to show the value of campaigns and learn about what not to do next time

The Local Maxima Problem

Source: Joshua Porter/Performable “Metrics Driven Design” SXSWi 2011

Acquisition Conversion Engagement Satisfaction

Consumer Usage Analytics

Source: Joshua Porter/Performable “Metrics Driven Design” SXSWi 2011

What this means for us

Key steps in metric-driven design

Identify business objectives Map out the user journey

Identify core metrics Test, measure, and optimize

Key Trends from SXSW

Convergence of Offline/Online Advertising Transmedia Gamification

Evolution of Purchase Decisions Emergence of Micro-communities

Actionable Analytics

“What makes big ideas into a brand? Big ideas are like trains – people have to want to go that way. The big promise is that

it belongs to everybody who wants it.”

- Tim O’Reilly, O’Reilly Media Founder