RonAmok!

The second of our video series explaining serial content strategies.

Here is a complete transcript of the video:

The Double-Value Curve

Last AmokTalk, we described the Long Tail and the things you need to think about with respect to your marketing strategies. With that as our foundation, let’s look at the data another way. Let’s change this axes from “downloads” to “value” – meaning the value that a particular piece of content means to an individual looking for that content.

And here’s how it works. When you first release your serial content, it may or not have any value to your customer. It depends on whether or not they need that particular information at that particular time. Let’s look at three scenarios:

First, we have a content-consumer who is looking for “timely” content. Perhaps they like trying new restaurants, and their favorite restaurant-blogger has just published a new review. In this case, the information is timely, and so the value to the content-consumer is high.

But what about another content-consumer, someone who has no persistent need for new restaurant reviews? In this case, when the review is fresh, it has no value to her. But then, at sometime in the future, let’s say that she’s looking for an opinion on that new restaurant that she just drove by. Well, at that Moment of Truth, this review will be very valuable to her.

And lastly, there’s is a hybrid example, formed by combining both scenarios. Let’s say that a content-consumer reads our restaurant review the day it’s released, but he does nothing more with the information than tucks it away into his memory. And then, at some time in the future, when his girlfriend talks about this restaurant that she just drove by on the way home from work, he remembers the review, and finds it for her. In this case, the review is valuable at two different points in it’s lifetime — forming what I like to call as the double-value curve.

Newspapers have built a revenue-stream around the double-value curve. Have you noticed that fresh content is free – yet if you need to go into their archives, you’ll need to pay for it? It brings up an interesting question. How come people will pay for information that used to be free? The answer’s simple, because the value of information is directly proportional to how much you need it at any given moment.

Now, I’m not saying to go out and create a pay-for-use model for your company’s serial content. But it’s important for you to remember that the value of your serial content has less to do with you and more to do with the immediate need of your customers. And by understanding the power of the double-value curve, you can build complete marketing strategies around it.

In the next AmokTalk, I’ll share some real world data with you that illustrate the power of combining the Long Tail with the Double-value curve.

Tags: ronamok double-value curve marketing serial content serial content strategy amoktalk

New Media is so often associated with Marketing that it’s easy to overlook its infinite other uses. For example, what about New Media behind the firewall?

Corporations of all sizes have information that isn’t for public consumption — information that resides safely on the company’s Intranet. Perhaps you want to distribute a presentation on a competitor’s pricing strategies? Or, what about rolling out product training for your Sales Team? Maybe you want to share development information throughout the entire R&D team?

The advantage of using New Media technologies behind the firewall centers on a perceived risk-factor. Not all corporations are comfortable with the transparency and authenticity requirements of producing successful New Media — especially on the public side of the firewall. But if that same company tries experimenting on its private Intranet, its perceived risk is much lower.

Last week I was speaking with the Director of Human resources for a large company. We talked about the impact of New Media, and the different ways that it can be used to educate, inform, and entertain. She then hit me with an “Ah-ha!” moment.

She described her job in a very interesting way — to market Employee Benefits to a target market a few thousand clients. Her products include things such as 401K plans and medical benefits. Her responsibilities include educating her “clients” about choices with regards to Vision Plans, Dental Plans, and suggestions for containing the rising cost of prescription medications. Today, she performs her job using PowerPoint presentations, Microsoft Word, and email blasts, but she thinks she can do so much better.

For example, what if she could put together short, informal videos? What if she had an internal blog or podcast, where she could discuss things in a timely manner? What if she could open up a dialog with her “clients,” gathering feed feedback though the use of comments?

New media Marketing is not limited to the external marketing. It is a new way to interact with other people.

If you are a New Media Evangelist, working for a company that’s not quite ready for public uses of New Media, try suggesting that they play behind the firewall. Perhaps after a few successful internal experiments, they’ll be willing to go outside to play.

Tags: New Media Behind the Firewall Intranet corporate benefits employee communucations ronamok New Media Evangelist

Jeff Foxworthy is a funny guy. He has this bit called: “You might be a Redneck if…________…” and then he fills in the blank with some wacky trait.

Well, based on my last post, I thought that it would be fun to start a little game called: “You might be in the Fishbowl if…”

Below, I’ve started us off with ten. But I’m tagging fellow “fishbowlers” such as John Wall, CC Chapman, David Jacobs, Jeremy Vaught, Chris Brogan and some friends over at Twitter to see if they can add to the list. Please, feel free to add on. And have fun!

I’ll start us off:

1. If you dream in 140 characters or less, you might be in the Fishbowl
2. If someone calls you a TWiT and you think it’s a compliment, you might be in the Fishbowl
3. If “Hawaii” isn’t your first thought when you hear the word “Mahalo,” you might be in the Fishbowl
4. If you’ve ever Twittered from a public restroom stall…you might be in the Fishbowl
5. If you’ve got more than one “media property,” you might be in the Fishbowl
6. If you’ve ever set a vanity Google Alert, you might be in the Fishbowl
7. If you have more than one avatar, you might be in the Fishbowl
8. If everyone at your dinner table knows who Robert Scoble is, you might be in the Fishbowl.
9. If you named your cat “Long Tail,” you might be in the fishbowl
10. If you know the exchange rate of the Linden, you might be in the fishbowl

Please…continue on…