3 Things Google Will Never Do

2012/01/31

Google has successfully positioned itself as a brand that can accomplish anything. While this well-executed marketing and promotions strategy has created an aura of “nothing is impossible”, the reality is that Google is still a business. The publicly-traded search giant earns more than 95% of its revenue from advertising, so there are some things Google will never do.

Here are three:

  1. Google will never add federal, state or county food safety inspection reports to local restaurant search results. Google Offers has signaled to the business community that Google wants to help businesses generate sales, which generates more revenue for Google. Conversion of brand impressions into sales revenue is why Google has been taking search personally, with the recent launches of Google Plus, Google Music and other personalized social experiences.  Any action by Google that increases the public relations expense of a company hurts Google’s bottom line. This is probably the same reason that unfiltered, real-time search results is no longer a feature. Real-time search didn’t work well for companies like Kenneth Cole. Basically, Google will not launch any product or feature that will reduce earnings. This principle is reinforced by their focus on details regarding their search engine results page.
  2. Google will never try to disrupt industries with more political power than them. Google retreating from its push to deploy Google Wallet on  mobile carriers in the United States shows that Google has learned from past experience. The shutdown of the Google Health and Google PowerMeter services shook the company’s naiveté culture of “changing the world”. Google found out the the world is just fine the way it is for the energy and healthcare industries. Just as Google works persistently to protect earnings growth and shareholder value, power utilities and healthcare companies took advantage of industry-wide inertia to stall any momentum generated by Google’s attempted disruption. Google Health had the potential to decrease the cost of healthcare with “group buying” and e-records portability. Google PowerMeter may have reduced excessive energy consumption, which could have wiped out energy company dividends. You can see why Google is being shut out of the energy, healthcare (and now telecom e-commerce) industries. Google has reverted to personalized retail-oriented search products that involve music and media, where it has a better chance of profitable disruption. Also, it should be noted that shareholders may punish Google if they feel the company is doing too much social good rather than focusing on making money.
  3. Google will never stop innovating to find new opportunities for people to access Google search. From Android to Chrome, users keep finding their way to Google’s search engine. More searches mean more revenue for Google. It is quite possible that kitchen appliances can be provided at a discount in the future in order to provide Google an exclusive right to query recipes online for you. Android is experiencing tremendous growth, and the ability for users to take Google search anywhere with them is a powerful brand impression. The demonstration of dependability and availability can only strengthen Google’s mind share in the mobile space. Google appears to understand how mobile works: mobile doesn’t scale. Instead, mobile grows organically until it reaches maturity. This cycle happens continuously with every iteration of a form factor or product line. This is why Android fragmentation works for Google while Microsoft and Nokia are sharing the same lifeboat. Mobile platforms do not need to be uniform and monolithic: they just need to work for the consumer at any time in any place.

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Mara Carfagna: The Most Clever Minister in the World

2012/01/31

The story about how Mara Carfagna made her splash into Italian politics has been well-documented. She has been declared the “most beautiful minister in the world”. Although Carfagna has been lauded for her beauty, she has been criticized for her hardline anti-feminist stance on several issues. 

Mara Carfagna, the most beautiful minister in the world

Mara Carfagna, the most beautiful minister in the world

After the exit of Silvio Berlusconi, many expected Carfagna to fade back into Italian society or perhaps find a new career in television as an analyst or presenter. In fact, many thought that she might be thrown under the bus after the austerity crisis unfolded. It turns out that Mara Carfagna is driving the bus. Not long after Berlusconi announced his plans to resigns, something strange began hovering over Montecitorio in Italy.

UFO hovering over Montecitorio

UFO hovering over Montecitorio

It did not take long after Berlusconi’s resignation announcement for speculation to spread about whether or not Carfagna had designs for the prime minster post. She denied such rumors and re-focused her energy on helping Italy cope with the looming debt crisis that had been spreading through Europe. Nonetheless, a former beauty model with short hair who dresses in sharp suits immediately attracted attention of the international media and implicit comparisons to Anna, a character from ABC’s remake of the TV Series called V, portrayed by actress Morena Baccarin.

Morena Baccarin as Anna in remake of ABC-TV series V

Morena Baccarin as Anna in remake of ABC-TV series called "V"

Some consider these comparisons chauvinist, while others welcome the ascent of women into larger-than-life roles in politics. After all, she had been hand-picked by Berlusconi and was a strong advocate and negotiator for his policies. Her initial splash into Italian politics proved effective and formidable, but after a few minor setbacks, she has still managed to maintain her political capital. Carfagna’s clout may help smooth the path of Italy’s transition into a more austere nation.

Mara Carfagna has described herself as anti-feminist, which is partially true. The main point is that she did not pander to groups who expected her blessing on every traditionally feminist issue. Instead, she focused on generating a reputation as a hardline technocrat who specializes in keeping agendas on track. Despite her attempts to avoid the label, her behind-the-scenes arm twisting is the sign of a strong feminist who has big plans for a strong and prosperous Italy. She has signaled to her fellow politicians that she is willing to do whatever it takes to help Italy as a public servant, an approach similar to Eva Kaili of Greek Parliament.

Mara Carfagna wants to see a prosperous Italy -- no more, no less

Mara Carfagna wants to see a prosperous Italy -- no more, no less

 

So, what is next to Mara Carfagna? No one really knows how she plans to invest her political capital. However, whatever path this law school graduate takes, she will have to make deals in a leaner, more austere Italy, which will be very fascinating to watch on its road to recovery from the European debt crisis.

 

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Bloomberg Asia’s Second Screen Engagement

2012/01/16

As the number of distribution channels for content increases, the competition for attention becomes even more fierce. As the battle for your attention heats up, engagement has become more important than ever. One of the paths to deeper customer engagement is deploying companion content on smartphones and tablets (collectively known as the “second screen”). Bloomberg is a pioneer in second screen engagement.

Bloomberg Terminal Desktop Dual Screen Form Factor

Bloomberg Terminal Desktop Dual Screen Form Factor

Bloomberg has been using the second screen for decades. On Bloomberg Television, breaking news is almost always “coming across your Bloomberg terminal”, a reference to the text-based information service. The Bloomberg terminal is where business professionals around the world access accurate, timely market data to make better decisions. In fact, Bloomberg is a pioneer in the second screen engagement, as its viewers have been using email, smartphones and computers to get market data. Many years of experience has shown Bloomberg when to show data on the TV and when to direct users to access more complicated data themselves. Lately, Bloomberg has embraced even more screens to help deliver their strong brand to users worldwide.

iPads and iPhones are important status symbols in China and Hong Kong. There is such a demand for these devices that Apple has temporarily halted iPhone sales in China after an incident at its Beijing store. In fact, you will see many of hosts on Bloomberg Asia holding and using iPads during the broadcast, which is a strong signal of success and wealth in Asia. Sharply-dressed professionals carrying an iPad as a business tool is extremely appealing to audiences, as market data is literally at their finger tips.

Susan Li and Rishaad Salamat holding iPads during interview on Bloomberg Asia Edge

Susan Li and Rishaad Salamat holding iPads during interview on Bloomberg Asia Edge

Showing the television presenters holding the tablets while delivering news is brilliant marketing. For decades, Bloomberg has been using its reach to showcase the design, ease of use and practicality of its Bloomberg terminals. In recent years, Bloomberg has been demonstrating the functionality of the terminals in various situations and surrounding its products with its best and brightest talent. During the early morning shows before markets open, the focus is on the news gathering features of the Bloomberg system. By mid-morning while markets are underway, the focus shifts to charting and analysis. While Bloomberg terminal users are familiar with this routine, more casual viewers are being gradually introduced to using their iPhones and iPads for financial news and analysis.

Visit Bloomberg on the second screen:

 

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Google Taking Product Search Personally

2012/01/04

Google has always been interested in powering e-commerce with search. Google Product Search has had mixed results over the years. Let’s see how Google transformed this idea into a fascinating platform that generates intimate sales experiences.

Google Product Search, aka Google Shopping, aka Froogle

Google Product Search, aka Google Shopping, aka Froogle

First, there was Froogle.

The name was a creative play on the word “frugal”.  Unfortunately, the word did not gain traction or any brand momentum, as it was launched during a time when “splurge” was the trend. Next, Froogle became Google Shopping in order to signal parity with then-rival Yahoo! Shopping. This was a good tactic, but Google did not have a hassle-free shopping cart or payment system yet. They had to method of converting improved shopping search results into considerable sales growth, like more established e-retailers.

Then, in an effort to comfort shareholders who felt Google had strayed too far away from their core competency, the search giant changed the product name again to Google Product Search. For two consecutive holiday shopping seasons, Google had not been able to outshine the online retail giants. The name changes were not working.

Froogle.
Google Shopping.
Google Product Search.

There is definitely a twist of irony here. Google appeared to be having SEO problems, but not in the traditional sense. Google was having a tough time breaking into the powerful mind share controlled by Amazon.com.

Google Taking Things Personally

Google Music may be Google’s first success into gaining some of that mind share. This new product launched in late 2011 shows how Google understands the entertainment value of search, discovery and sharing. That perception was reinforced by Google’s reboot of Google Catalogs for iPad, which was great timing as a study reported by the Wall Street Journal shows that shoppers are more likely to purchase items from their iPad.

Google Offers also shows the company’s new focus on urgency. When people search for items, they are more likely to buy them. From this perspective, Google Product Search is now spread across the Google platform in a way that is similar to Google Labs. Now, Google creates more brand impressions generated from song previews, catalog page turns, and instant local offers.

The thrill of finding the perfect sweater, the excitement of discovering a new favorite song, and the empowerment of group buying: these are all very personal user experiences in Google Product Search. These are intimate experiences which can only lead to more conversions on the Google Product Search platform, which benefits both buyers and sellers.

However, it is still too early to predict how well this idea will perform.

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5 New Year’s Resolutions for Using Social Media

2012/01/01

Social media in 2011 has been fun for many participants. For others, the social media experience has been bad — very bad. Here are some New Year’s resolutions to make your social media experience more meaningful in 2012.

Set boundaries.

Write down a list of rules for handling any given topic you may encounter in social media. This meta-communication exercise helps you prepare to handle the unexpected topics. Yes, maturity helps, but sometimes fatigue or excitement could impair judgment. This is why a list of rules is an essential firewall designed to protect your brand on social media.

Script interactions. Use boundaries.

Language contains constructs to enable communication. These constructs repeat themselves daily. The key to using these constructs online is writing down the structure in which you choose to communicate. This scripting of communication is akin to cartoon character development. Once you have developed your script for interactions in social media, stick with it. Be consistent, and use your boundaries to stay focused on building a strong brand.

Always communicate within a context.

Maintaining a consistent mode of communication with people who only know you through your brand. This is one of the most powerful tools used today to generate powerful, recognizable brand impressions.

Bill Gates, like many tech entrepreneurs, wear consistent uniforms

Bill Gates, like many tech entrepreneurs, wear consistent uniforms

We see this all the time in the tech industry:

  • Bill Gates wears a sweater and a button-down dress shirt.
  • Mark Zuckerberg wears a grey shirt and flip-flops.
  • Steve Jobs wore the black mock turtleneck and jeans.
  • Biz Stone wears his trademark jacket with lots of zippers and black-rimmed glasses.

Avoid gossip.

Social media sites like Twitter and Facebook appeal to the voyeuristic side of the Internet. Twitter is a shorter, better name than “a little bird told me”, but nonetheless the social messaging platform is a gossip engine. Facebook sounds better than “Continuous Reputation Assessment System”, however this life-blogging platform is also a gossip engine. There’s no other way to say this: avoid gossip.

Make sharing more meaningful.

Avoid sending short, encoded messages on social platforms. Instead, you should create a blog post with 200 words or more discussing why a brand or personality is meaningful to you. As social media matures, people are less likely to friend, follow, circle or start relationships unless they understand the terms and conditions.

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The Zen of Leo Laporte: Good Vibes

2011/12/30

The Zen of Leo is too awesome for words. We’ll do our best. Let’s get started.

Leo Laporte Wearing the Stylish TWiT Fez

Leo Laporte Wearing the Stylish TWiT Fez

Since his broadcast debut in the early 90s, Leo has been sharing his life experience with his audience. During his journey, he has made tons of friends. There are many articles talking about his growing media empire, but we will just discuss how Leo Laporte and his positive vibes are making the Internet and the world a better place.

Leo is nice.

You already know that our mantra is “be nice”, so when a nice guy like Leo succeeds in media broadcasting, we are excited. If you look at all the aggresive broadcasters and shock jocks who have come and gone on TV and radio, it is great to see Leo rise above the noise.

He’s patient; he listens; he genuinely wants to make our lives better.

Leo is fair.

Leo’s polite etiquette has been misinterpreted by some people as weakness.

For example, Michael Arrington tried to paint Leo as a compromised journalist for receiving a review unit of the Palm Pre. This, of course, was outrageous as Leo is one of the few honest journalists who actually buys his own tech gadgets for review. Arrington confused Leo’s politeness for weakness and tried to do what most unscrupulous, ambitious young people are doing in Silicon Valley: ruin the other guy. Leo’s outrage was 100% justified. See for yourself.

Leo is witty.

Gawker recently published an article about Leo’s personal life. (We won’t link to it. Find it if you’re interested.) The article was delayed with the intention of having maximum effect on his Christmas holiday. Leo responded with a brilliant tweet: “Had gawker bothered to ask, [trolling tweeter], wife and I have been separated for a year. It’s just not something I talk about on air.” Again, Leo is nice; Leo is fair; now, Leo is witty. Just pure brilliance.

For more fun, watch TWiT #333: Holiday Special. You can also download the podcast from iTunes.

Why The Zen of Leo Makes The World Better

Leo is sharing another side of broadcasting. In fact, Leo’s show content resembles the golden age of radio, when people would gather around the transistor and listen for news, information and entertainment.

Leo has created a world where it’s OK to be nice.

It doesn’t have to be dog-eat-dog. This constructive concept is what attracts so many listeners to Leo Laporte’s brand. Leo informs, inspires and encourages listeners to make their communities better. The chat rooms during TWiT’s live shows are full of information and more powerful than any Google search algorithm.

Leo’s genius allows him to develop each niche podcast product in a manner that makes each market segment feel like it is being directly targeted. This helps maintain active listeners who may normally tune out on other tech shows. His understanding of mass communication and his attention to detail makes each podcast series an intimate experience for each listener.

As a human being, Leo is generating a powerful type of synergy in this world. His audience tunes in for advice and information. They use that information to improve their lives and the lives of others.  This positive energy is multiplied even further by the informed decisions that users make when it comes to issues, such as privacy, online security and data backup.

Above all, Leo Laporte is a credit to the human race. We should all try to be more like Leo.

Addendum

Oh, yeah…. Did we mention Leo was fun?

 

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Complete List of Google Chrome User Profile Nicknames

2011/12/24

If you have been testing the latest version of Google Chrome, you may have noticed something interesting. When you visit Options > Personal Stuff, you will have the opportunity to create new Google Chrome user profiles.

The more you add, the more creative Chrome gets in icons and nicknames.

Google Chrome User Profile Nicknames and Thumbnails

Google Chrome User Profile Nicknames and Thumbnails

Here is a complete list of Google Chrome user profile nicknames:

  1. Agent X
  2. Awesome
  3. Bluesy
  4. Buttondown
  5. Fluffy
  6. Fritz
  7. Lemonade
  8. Mia
  9. Moonbean
  10. Petals
  11. Pickles
  12. Saratoga
  13. Shady
  14. Slice
  15. Sneaky
  16. Spandex
  17. Sparky
  18. Sweetness

If you try to create anymore users, you will be provided User 1, User 2, etc, as your default nicknames. Be sure to not use any of these nicknames for Google Plus or you may find your account deactivated. ;-)

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New Google Bar Looks Like Leaderboard for Company’s Focus

2011/12/23

The new Google bar appears to be a key indicator for Google’s focus. Google calls it the “New Google Bar”, but it looks more like a fancy drop-down menu. Or dare we say — a classic Mac OS Apple Menu Items drop-down. (no, not a Start menu)

New Google bar, with multi-colored logo

New Google bar, with multi-colored logo

Google may have out-Googled itself again. They keep tweaking. And tweaking.

New Google bar with plain gray logo

New Google bar with plain gray logo

Google will be battling three powerful forces as it pushes acceptance to its users in the coming months:

  1. Out of sight. Out of mind. Just like the hard worker who performs a task dutifully for a big company, a Google product may be useful but may be also under-appreciated. The situation may be worsened by fewer brand impressions of certain Google products due to the menu redesign. For example, we have already forgotten about Google’s Shopping service. After accidentally mousing over the “More” menu item, you can experience brand impressions of all the other Google services competing with Google Shopping for attention.

    New Google bar with expanded menu

    New Google bar with expanded menu

  2. Most users are not UI snobs. Google forgets that not everyone likes a clutter-free screen. As the latest bubble prepares to burst, people are talking about User Interfaces (UIs) in the same way that experts talk about fine wines. Unfortunately, most users don’t care about the accouterments and finer points of software layouts. People just want the software to work. Nobody likes a menu because it has an earthy finish.
  3. New Google Bar appears to be gamification of Google product focus. (apologies for the buzzword!) Each menu item appears to be ranking the focus at Google right now. Google Plus appears to be still in “all-hands-on-deck” mode, with Google Web Search (revenue) in the #2 slot. Google Images, Google Maps, YouTube, Google News, and Gmail are the sticky properties that drive people to use Google Web Search. The other products look like they are on probation. People like picking winners. Users may avoid services they think are going to be discontinued in the near future. After all, people were burned by a drastic change to Google Reader and the sudden shutdown of Google Wave.

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Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook was a Game — Not Anymore

2011/12/21

Mark Zuckerberg knows social. He understands that social, at its core, is just a business. His actions in 2011 signaled to everyone that Facebook is all-business. To Zuckerberg, Facebook was just a game – not anymore.

Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook was a Game -- Not Anymore

Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook was a Game -- Not Anymore

In May 2011, a Facebook public relations firm was caught using a smear campaign for a social push marketing strategy. Basically, the scheme was designed to discredit Google’s handling of customer data. The intention was to generate noise to distract people from Google’s effective privacy awareness campaign, featuring notable evangelists like Maile Ohye.

The plan fell apart when a security researcher refused to be an accomplice. If the public relations firm had found a less honest security expert, the general public would never have known about the smear campaign. Instead, the rumor about Google’s data privacy issue would have spread through social networks like a contagion.

To some users, this practice appears vile. However, to investors this revelation proved to them that Zuckerberg is ready to do anything to succeed. Investors love the “win-at-all-cost” attitude.

Data Mining for Gold

Marketers often paint social networking as a path to stronger friendships, deeper connections and ultimately happiness. That may be true for some users, but the marketing industry considers social media a perfect workaround for the “Do-Not-Call List” laws. The objective of social media is for users to build rich profiles for database marketing.

The goal of any social platform is to identify and target qualified leads through data mining. Revenue is generated from selling access to such data. The enforcement actions against noncompliant users within social networks, such as Facebook and Google Plus, have been designed to improve the quality of data being sold to marketers.

Facebook  is providing marketers a place to launch various promotional mixes. The company wants to provide the best data set possible. Personal selling is deployed on brand pages, where the consumer has a chance to interact directly with brands. Targeted advertising is aimed at Facebook users based on timeline content and profile information. Sales promotions and product demonstrations are more personal on Facebook because friends, instead of total strangers, are doing the selling for the brands. The recent enforcement actions are designed to ensure that marketing dollars are as effective as possible.

Facebook may be securing its platform to offer Facebook-branded financial services. With the company’s pending IPO debut, Zuckerberg could introduce various financial products, such as a Facebook credit card or a distributed micro loan system for charity projects. Facebook currently offers Facebook Credits. Even more ambitious would be a challenge to Google Wallet, if Facebook incorporates multi-factor authentication into near-field digital devices. In any case, it is never too soon to take steps to secure the Facebook platform.

Bottom line: Facebook is no longer playing games. The new reality is that if you want to exist on Facebook, you must be prepared to verify your identity, with government-issued documents if requested. This level of verification and due diligence is analogous to applying for a visa to enter another country. However, this extra effort for Facebook is a necessary expense. The protection and quality of the data Facebook will sell to willing buyers is a crucial part of its future operations.

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6 Reasons Why Time Person of the Year 2011 Should Have Been “Contagion”

2011/12/19

Time recently unveiled “the protester” as its Person of the Year. Of course, the goal is to sell more magazines and subscriptions, but Time has missed an opportunity to talk about the most influential topic this year: contagion.

Debt contagion is not disease or radiation, but it is still contagion and spreads.

Debt contagion is not disease or radiation, but it is still contagion that spreads. The same goes for information.

Contagion requires communication.
Communication requires a medium of transport.
Media is rife with contagion.

The word “contagion” often carries a negative connotation, indicating that something sinister or malicious is spreading out of control. Disease, radiation and debt are often described in this context. This year has proven that 2011 is the year where ideas and motivation also spread like contagion, for better or for worse.

Here is a look at 6 instances where contagion affected change:

  1. Euro debt crisis contagion started with a few countries who first denied that there was any problem. The bad debt contagion has spread continent-wide and there has been a series of meetings to find a solution.
  2. In the Middle East, the chain reaction of protests began with the self-immolation of street hawker in Tunisia. The protest contagion spread into several parts of the developing world.
  3. Occupy Wall Street rhetoric contagion has spread to Hong Kong, where a new party called the Labour Party  has been formed to add a new voice to the political landscape. The messages from this nascent party appears to be populist, but it is too early to determine the party’s position in Hong Kong’s political context.
  4. Banking reform contagion spreads to the United Kingdom, as widespread UK regulatory changes that resemble America’s Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 will be announced later today. The proposed changes essentially separate the retail and investment branches of banks in an effort to prevent casino-style risk-taking.
  5. Social media continues to be a powerful engine for spreading the contagion of rumor and innuendo, where critical mass  on any issue generates political instability or complications for both public and private employees. Essentially, platforms like Facebook and Twitter are “contagion engines”. Even now, social networks are generating earned media for Time magazine as people complain about the Person of the Year 2011 choice.
  6. Google’s employees are buying in to Larry Page’s leadership, as the search giant returns to the “release early, release often” philosophy as the driving force behind its product launches. You also see “maniacal focus” (a term coined by Microsoft’s Bill Gates) in the development and deployment of Google’s new user interface. Focus is contagious. The recent executive shuffle at Google involving Marissa Mayer shows that Google is able to move talent where it is needed at any time.

 

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