Tweet the Power!

Twenty years ago, the rap group Public Enemy dropped one of the greatest rap songs of all time, Fight the Power! It appears two decades later, my brothers and sisters from across the pond have begun to fight the power via twitter.
Over the past week, I’ve been trying to master social media in the UK, it turns out that Gordon Brown,  Britain’s Prime Minister, would provide one of the best examples of social media mobilization campaign. The Leader of the Labour Party has begun to defend Britain’s National Healthcare System (NHS) by joining a Twitter campaign defending the health service from attacks by Republicans intent on derailing President Obama’s healthcare bill.

Britons angry at the attacks have organised a campaign on the micro-blogging site, which has also been joined by the health secretary, Andy Burnham. The social networking site crashed yesterday with the volume of messages for the #welovethenhs campaign.

It is because of a social media tool like twitter that this cross continental campaign is possible. This will no doubt be an exciting exploration of how social media tools impacting politics. This situation wasn’t created in a vacuum but a culmination of several factors.
UK is an engaged social networking community. Of the 34 million internet users, 27 million actively visited a social network site. However, individuals in London are leaders and are even more actively engaged. The city was recently declared as the new twitter capital of the world. The city has embraced the idea of creating a community on line to share and communicate. They have taken it a step further and have mobilized to influence change and stand up for themselves.
Moreover, this situation has generated additional attention because of the use of traditional media as well. Brown and other ministers have begun campaigning on American soil giving interviews to tell and share their story and not let the country be exploited and misrepresented unfairly by the hard right.
I can’t help but wonder would American’s collectively rise up against another country via social media? I doubt most Americans would rally around just one issue in another country. We all know the exploits of the Obama campaign to use social media to secure the election. However, this case should serve as a solid reminder to US politicians to remember that politics are no longer local, but global. 2009 may serve as another summer where we’ll see power may belong to the people as you gotta Tweet the Power!

Spain & Social Networking

I struggled this week to find a country I wanted to explore when I decided to examine one of the countries on my travel schedule when I go to Europe: Spain.  It appears this European nation is one of the few countries where Facebook hasn’t pulled a Napoleon Bonaparte can have complete world domination; they must supplant Tuenti in Spain. 

Tuenti is Spain’s dominant leader for social media.  The site is targeted at the Spanish audience predominately teens and the twenty something crowd.  

Approximately 13 million Spanish Internet users visited a social networking site in December 2008 – up 41 percent versus the previous year. The most popular social networking property was Spanish site Tuenti.com, which grew 770 percent over the course of the year to 5.6 million visitors in December 2008.

Tuenti retains is elite status by only being accessible via invitation only.  Tuenti faithful can choose their network of friends, “ such as college dorms or favorite hangouts, as well as the more general categories, including city of residence or university attended, on which Facebook networks are based.”

Although this is a targeted demo for any marketers, advertisers beware… the Spanish site aims to change how they do advertising.  “To lead a change in the Spanish advertising market, by investing in a new relevant and segmented communication model, more efficient for advertisers and pleasant for users.” 

So what is this new “Spanish advertising market?”  I don’t know? I tried to uncover what will ultimately separate Tuenti from Facebook, but I kept reading rhetoric from the company’s CEO that keeps investors intrigued. However, it makes me increasingly concerned because sometimes being first isn’t enough.

I’m left wondering….

What is ultimately the difference between the local favorite and the Facebook? 

Can Spain support two social networking sites? 

Where will social networking and Tuenti be in one year or even 18 months in Spain?

Brands Beware

 

In December 2008, Oliver Beale, a passenger traveling on Virgin Atlantic from Mumbai to London, was so disturbed by his in-flight meal that he wrote a complaint letter to Richard Branson, complete with photos of the food. Copies of the letter spread rapidly via e-mail and the story was quickly picked up by bloggers and traditional media. To read Oliver Beale’s letter follow this link: The best complaint letter ever?
In response to the media attention surrounding the letter, Virgin Atlantics public-relations team quickly got out the message on Facebook that Mr. Branson had personally phoned Mr. Beale and invited him to help select food and wine for future flights. According to Paul Charles, a Virgin Atlantic spokesman, “Our response was so fast, some people even accused us of setting the whole thing up as a publicity stunt, We took that as a compliment.”

Letter Excerpt: “It appears to be in an evidence bag from the scene of a crime. A CRIME AGAINST BLOODY COOKING. Either that or some sort of back-street underground cookie, purchased off a gun-toting maniac high on his own supply of yeast.”

 
Honestly, this is one of the funniest letters I have ever read and it shows how quickly a company’s brand can be damaged through social media if they are not prepared with the correct response when issues arise. In this case Virgin Atlantic got off easy, Richard Branson made a call to Oliver and everyone had a nice laugh about the situation and now both Oliver and Virgin Atlantic have tons of publicity to help them sleep at night.
But as the recent United Airlines guitar debacle shows, this is not always the case. Twitter, Facebook and other social media are changing the world of consumer complaints and brands must remain aware that consumers can and will use social media to tell their side of the story.

Mind the Gap

Social media in the United Kingdom is becoming more popular according to a survey conducted a few months ago. According to Hitwise, “UK Internet users are spending less of their online time shopping and more time browsing online media.” 

This  is a reported reversal from one year ago.

 Twitter use has also registered a huge spike in the UK.  Just this week, it was reported that “the micro-blogging site has popularized amongst the UK masses to such an extent that it attracted traffic 22-fold in just a year, being the fastest amongst all other sites.”

Not suprisingly, with these kinds of numbers, the UK is seeing the same kind of defection from newspapers to online news sources that is being experienced around the globe.  Another Hitwise survey found that in the UK, “print readership of newspapers has dropped by a staggering 5 million in 15 years. This equates to nearly a 20% decrease.”  

According to Social Media Trader, prominent newspapers in the UK have recognized the shift and most are responding.  Most newspapers’ online editions now are Web 2.0, as detailed below.   

Newspapers	Icons*	Popular**	Video	Blog/Profile***	Digg FP
Times					310
The Independent					139
The Telegraph					183
The Daily Express					0
The Sun					18
The Mirror					14
The Guardian					443
The Daily Mail					309
The Daily Star					1
Financial Times				Planned	44

*Social news and bookmarking Icons for easy submission.
**Shows most popular, most emailed or most commented stories on the front page. Front page content determined by users.
***Has own blog or profile

There is an slogan in England, “Mind the Gap”, that refers to the divide between the platform floor at the Underground and the train idling at the station.  It is a phrase that has worked itself into the vernacular and warns of the dangers associated with a disconnect between two areas.  It is an interesting reminder for us as we head to London with all its grandeur and history, to learn more about how respected brands like The Times of London – in print since 1785 – are working to adapt to the new world of social media. Just yesterday stateside, a respected national news brand, The Washington Post  announced the launch of a brand new mobile Web site characterized as “the definitive mobile news source for Washington. Unparalleled local and national news and analysis helps you stay informed and connected on-the-go.”  The swift shift in how the public now receives its news could not have been predicted even a decade ago.

As we spend our last week of class together, I know I’ll be thinking of these dichotomies, how fast social media is changing our field and how this class is working to arm us in real time with what we need to “mind the gap” in our own lives – both personally and professionally.  

Pepsi Targets Online Influencers in China

With their Voice of a New Generation campaign, Pepsi demonstrates itself to be a strategic player and early leader in the social media space in China.

Some bloggers have been critical of the campaign’s offline logistics, others see a error in going after a small niche audience and the available metrics indicate relatively poor initial online performance compared to other examples. None-the-less, I think Pepsi is blazing an intentional trail that other companies looking to enter the Chinese social media scene should consider following.

Voice of a New Generation is an integrated real-world/broadcast/digital program focused on the “alternative” or “underground” music scene. Battle of the Bands events are held with contestants earning slots on a branded American Idolesque TV show, with buzz and voting taking place in the Web 2.0 space.

Voice of a New Generation Performance

Pepsi’s effort follows the successful Mongolian Cow Yogurt Super Girl contest (seriously, that’s the name). Super Girl generated 400 million TV viewers a month who voted for their favorite performer by SMS. Other talent search shows have been quite popular on Chinese TV as well. While the TV tie-in is certainly interesting, it’s the social media aspect of this campaign that is most intriguing and the real subject of this post.

Online, Pepsi is smart to create a social media ecosystem with many complimentary platforms:

• Tudou–video sharing
• Baidu–forum
• Sina–blog
• Tiany–forum
• QQ–game
• Douban–social networking

SMS/Twitter is missing, which warrants further investigation, but note the somewhat unusual inclusion of gaming. We see the implementation of a holistic plan strongly positioned to drive interactivity with the intended audience.

Why then are the numbers so small, as littleredbook.cn points out? More importantly, why do I think that’s just fine where many bloggers see Pepsi having misstepped by targeting “underground/alternative” music artists and fans instead of going after more of a “pop” audience where the numbers would be larger?

Two reasons.

1. I think Pepsi is going after cultural INFLUENCERS, not the broadest cross-section of the population. In the Coke vs. Pepsi war, it is important to differentiate the brands from one another and Pepsi has clearly decided to be the edgier player. Picking up market share can best be done by having a different personality than the leader. Read Bharghava and also Ries & Trout who explain this type of strategy in detail.

Creating an edgy brand promise is something that requires association. It’s one thing for a company to say they’re about individuality and fun, but another for those that actually live that individuality and fun lifestyle to provide the validation. So what we see here is Pepsi making a strategic choice to go after the small group of influencers. There is adequate literature on the power of influencers in the U.S. market, but I reference a Power of Influence blog post as it pointed me to a new international study (in which influencers are called “Global Multipliers”) for it has one particularly important finding:

“Among Global Multipliers in all markets, those in China are the most likely to use the Internet to share their recommendations.”

Pepsi is dead on target with the Voice of a New Generation strategy. Going after influencers that have their own social media connections on other platforms and in other communities can have great impact in the market. The metrics on the Pepsi sponsored pages alone are simply not painting the correct picture.

2. Pepsi is in the Chinese social media game for the long haul. Compared to Coca-Cola’s 2008 revenues which predominantly took place overseas (75%),  only 48% of Pepsi’s 2008 revenues were generated outside the U.S. That’s clearly got to change for Pepsi to stay competitive. As Fortune magazine points out, PepsiCo’s Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi (formerly of Boston Consulting Group) is a strategist well aware that “the U.S. marketplace [is] in slow-growth mode even in the best of times, [and] the biggest opportunities are overseas.” Reuters reports that given the enormous potential of the Chinese market, Pepsi is investing $1 billion in China over the next four years. So looking at short-term ROI (using the regular social media measurements) of the Voice of a New Generation campaign is meaningless. The game Pepsi is playing is for billions, not the cost of a one-off campaign.

Whether the underground music approach to tapping the emerging youth consumer segment of China works or not, Pepsi is on the right track looking to engage Global Multipliers in the Chinese social media scene. They should continue to identify these segments and engage them with other creative campaigns.

— “Pepsi Targets Online Influencers in China” posted by Gregg Rapaport

Entertained by the Grass-Mud Horse

Chinese internet users spend more time than Americans on entertainment sites (i.e. online games, music, video, blogs and chatting), but not so much on online banking, purchases, and search engines.  Due to the 20th anniversary of the Tienanmen Square massacre on June 4, China shut down Twitter, WordPress, Flickr, Bing, YouTube, and many other social networking sites with no signs of opening them back up soon.  The combination of Chinese netizens internet behavior (prefering entertainment over online search and purchasing) and Chinese government imposed censorship makes it very difficult for companies to penetrate the market using social media tools.  However, difficult does not mean impossible.  To reach target audiences via social media tools, companies must be creative in their strategies and listen closely to what Chinese internet users are saying.

In 2008, the Pew Research Center reported that “few in china complain about internet controls” claiming that Chinese internet users approve of the government’s management of the Internet.  However, a recent viral YouTube video about the grass-mud horse (a symbolic defiance of Chinese internet censorship) proves otherwise.

Michael Wines from The New York Times reports on the grass-mud horse as an “icon of resistenance to censhorship” in China (according to  adjunct professor of journalism at the University of California, Berkeley, Xiao Qiang).  Wines goes on to say that “China’s online population has always endured censorship, but the oversight increased markedly in December, after a pro-democracy movement led by highly regarded intellectuals, Charter 08, released an online petition calling for an end to the Communist Party’s monopoly on power.  Shortly afterward, government censors began a campaign, ostensibly against Internet pornography and other forms of deviance. By mid-February, the government effort had shut down more than 1,900 Web sites and 250 blogs — not only overtly pornographic sites, but also online discussion forums, instant-message groups and even cellphone text messages in which political and other sensitive issues were broached.”  It was called the most vicious crackdown in years by China Digital Times.

Videos of the mythical creature began to appear in early January 2009 on the Chinese search engine Baidu.  The grass-mud horse, a vulgar saying in Chinese, is symbolic and has multiple meanings. In the video, the grass-mud horse fights with the ‘river crab,’ a slang word in Chinese for ‘censorship.’  The viral video, reaching more than 1.4 million viewers as of early March 2009, has many strong double meanings that include mostly vulgar language.  Pairing perceived innocent words with double dirty meanings allows the video to get by strict government censorship allowing it to be widely distributed.

CNN reports in more depth about the specific meanings of each part of the video (Caution: not for children).  Global Voices Online reports about the internet phenomena of the grass-mud horse and its significance in the online and offline world in China.  The grass-mud horse has become so popular that an iPhone app was created for it in early June 2009 – re-named ‘strange horse,’ most likely due to censorship.

Global Voices Online explains that China’s government declared a ban on the grass-run horse after it went global with The New York Times article in early March 2009.  China’s administration claims that “the issue has been elevated into a political level, overseas media has turned it into a story of netizen and government confrontation.”  However, Oiwan Lam from Global Voices makes a clear point that it is not The New York Times, or anyone else for that matter, that is in the wrong for giving this worldwide exposure, but rather “the most crucial role [in promoting the grass-mud horse] is played by the Chinese censor / river crab, without which the Grass Mud Horse is nothing more than a dirty joke.”

Before entering the Chinese market with a social media strategy, it is essential to understand two major insights:

1. Censorship in China is a big hurdle to get over.  Before entering the market, be fully aware of what is censored.  Don’t let your marketing strategy falter because of this.

2.  Entertainment sells.  The viral video of the grass-run horse became so widespread not only because Chinese netizens are passionate about government censorship, but also because it was a medium that resonates with Chinese netizens.  To penetrate the Chinese market:  Make it fun.  Combine your product or organization with a game, video, discussion, or music.  High levels on Chinese internet users are already drawn to these entertaining sites online – make your presense known.

China’s Second Life

Broadband penetration in China totals 243 million for users age 13 and above. Of those, 224 million, or 92 percent, contribute to social media. That’s compared to 105 million Americans, or 76 percent of the U.S. broadband population according to Clickz.com.  The Chinese audience has utilized all social media tools from uploading videos to posting to a micro-blog.  Today, companies are taking advantage of the Chinese advancement in technology in order to advertise and market more technical audiences embracing the use of social media.

 China’s Second Life alternative, Hipihi, is a great way for brands to increase their reach to this dynamic audience, which includes over 50,000 registered users in China. Hipihi, according to their website is China’s first 3D virtual world that provides its residents with a real-time online environment for creation, collaboration, commerce, communication and entertainment. The goal is to foster and facilitate the building of an Oriental-influenced virtual world platform that facilitates multi-cultural interactions. Through the removal of physical space-time limits seeks to develop a technology platform people-to-people interaction, HiPiHi for virtual/ online activity that transcends reality and enable a new lifestyle that ignites the passions, dreams and hopes of individuals worldwide.

Hipihi draws the attention of many bloggers who often visit the site since they were established, in part, due to the Second Life craze in 2005.  Creators of Hipihi used the popularity surrounding virtual worlds to help brands market to consumers using viral worlds as a way to communicate and purchase produces.  Hipihi players are all Chinese and the creators of Hipihi think most of Chinese users are using internet or play games for entertainment or networking, therefore, needed this 3D world to satisfy such needs.  If brands want to learn about the developments and attraction to larger online audiences that Hipihi and other 3D virtual worlds are providing for them, using such websites as Hipihi generates the type of attention that helps make marketing to audiences faster and more of a significant use of social media tools.

Made in China

As I was doing my required reading to give my insight for China via this wordpress, I stumbled upon this snippet: http://mashable.com/2009/06/02/china-blocks-twitter-and-almost-everything-else/. After reading it initially I was shocked that China would block sites such as Twitter, Flickr, and other American social networking mediums. Then, I was more shocked at my western ethnocentrism. It’s interesting of how our cultural “norms” can go viral. As an American, I believe that it is an inalienable right for individuals to have access to which ever social mediums they choose. This may not be the case for China.  While many of the individuals who commented on this post were outraged, I think that with careful digging they could understand that perhaps China only chooses to allow their citizens to utilize social networking sites made in China.

 

It would be an unfair statement to say that the Chinese government is taking away citizens rights by not allowing them to visit certain sites.  Chinese spend a more significant amount on the internet per week than Americans. Additionally, there are a vast number of Chinese created social networking sites that are frequented. It is my theory that what China is doing by blocking certain social networking sites will be the start of cultural social networking. Social networking is as universal phenomenon but as more countries begin developing their own social networking site we begin to see cultural divides. I believe this will increase as social networking continues to expand.

ChinAmerica?

According to a recent Washington Post Article titled, “Chinese Consumers Eager to Excel at the American Pastime, the only bright spot in corporate earnings reports in recent months has been revenue in places such as Brazil, Russia, India and China.

In China consumer spending hit $1.3 trillion last year and for many American companies, China represents an alternate consumer universe where marketers can rewrite the story of their brands. In China Wrangler jeans are cool, a Wal-Mart opening is the social event of the year, Buicks are young and hip and KFC and Pizza Hut are hot places for dates.

“U.S. companies have been so successful in China because Chinese consumers have a ‘look up to the rich’ attitude and the United States is the world’s top developed country in their eyes,” said Gao Tao, a consultant for the International Brand Association in Beijing.

China has also recently become the #1 country for internet usage, according to the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) which has just published their mid-year statistical survey report on the Internet Development in China. Chinese consumerism and the explosion of internet usage has created the perfect opportunity for American brands to stake their claim and engage loyal customers through the development of social media branding campaigns.

Pepsi’s social media campaign

Pepsi recently launched a social media campaign in China targeted to the youth market. Pepsi created a “battle of the bands” themed event; all elements of the campaign are aggregated online on Pepsi’s main promotional site http://pepsi.sina.com.cn, and a series of satellite SNS groups were created to drive traffic to the contest and stimulate buzz online.

Using a “Battle of the bands” music contest, Pepsi’s campaign stretches across several large China social media sites: Tudou, Baidu, Sina, Tianya, QQ, and Douban. Pepsi’s branding strategy in China appears to focus on a niche group of rebellious youth and is in strong contrast to Coke’s mainstream positioning.

In my opinion Pepsi has done a great job of hitting the popular social media sites among Chinese youth and creating a foundation for the brand in order to compete against Coke.Pepsi also fully branded the rebellious spirit as “Pepsi”. Over time this branding will take hold and return some benefit especially if Pepsi keeps its sights set on social media and continues to engage its target audience in the areas where there interests lie.

Censoring Your Message

On January 20, 2009 people around the world sat and watched Barrack Obama’s inauguration speech including the People’s Republic of China up until Obama said, “Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions.” Like Twitter and YouTube, China censored the president of the United States.

China’s censorship is the government’s effort to neutralize critical online opinion. According to Britney Wilkins’ 25 Shocking Facts About Chinese Censorship, offending China online warrants jail time and fines are often issued as punishment.

What does this mean for social media in China? According to Bill Snyder social networking trumps censorship every time.

I’m not so sure that is the case. So how can brands tread lightly to reach their Chinese audience without offending its government?

Social media is all about the online conversations and engaging others. In order to tiptoe around the government’s regulations while reaching its target audience, brands have to do their research. Utilizing a number of social media sites could greatly benefit a brand because while one may be censored at the time, one may not.

According to BusinessWeek, in order to penetrate the Chinese market brands should:

1. Build Links: Chinese consumers are more focused on brands than most of their Western counterparts. They want to know which new trends will give them added status, and buy luxury goods not because they necessarily like them but because they are representations of success.
2. Create Buzz: “Buzz marketing is a big trend in experiential marketing which is very appealing to young people,” said Wang. “It empowers the consumer.”
3. An increasingly popular means of engagement is inviting customers to generate brand-related content.

Although brands should be flexible with the platforms they select, they should not censor their message.

Niche Networking – The Future For China’s SNS

China is a fascinating country to research for multiple reasons. There is a longstanding reputation of social and political unrest that has sparked international debate and when companies choose to enter the Chinese market a new set of rules come into play. For this post I decided to look at how the world’s largest population is using social media to engage with one another. We know that China ranks #1 in terms of Internet use with 243 million using the Internet and 224 million of that group is engaging in social media. So, what are some of the emerging trends and how can a brand use this to its advantage?

The post China’s “Plan B”  Social Media Strategy; Interaction after Connection from the blog Little Red Book reviews China’s SNS and raises an interesting point discussing how these networks are evolving. In China, social networks like Tinaya.com and mop.com are powerful because people are connecting over common interests rather than personal contacts. Unlike Facebook where you initially establish your lists of friends by inviting/joining people you know and tend to shy away from people you don’t know; these networks join people over political issues, hobbies, interests, etc.

The post discusses the evolution of  social networking in China and the desire for the social media savvy to go beyond simply connecting to interacting with people who share mutual interests.  This trend of niche communities compliments Chris Anderson’s theory of The Long Tail which basically says that the new market place is moving from mass to niche marketing.

I think groups connecting over issues rather than personal relationships are likely to have a more substantive discussion when engaging online. They are also more likely to  be attracted to similar products and organizations. This trend presents a great opportunity for brands in China. The idea that people are joining social networks to discuss specific topics important to them also places them into easily identified target markets.

Marketers all over the world want to know how to penetrate the 224 million Chinese that are engaging in social media. As importantly they want to spend less time finding their niche market and more time engaging with them. These social networks are essentially doing some of the background research for a brand. The groups are sharing what is important to them because it is what brought them together to have a discussion. Rather than throwing a dart and hoping it lands somewhere near its target, a brand can join these networks to look for groups that are discussing topics they can add value to and then cultivate relationships with future brand enthusiasts.^JT

Blowing the Whistle Online in China

China has left the US in the dust when it comes to Internet use.  According to Xinhua and the China Internet Network Information Center, 338 million Chinese “netizens” are now online – exceeding the US population.  Their top 10 most popular Internet sites include Sohu.com (the first publicly traded Chinese company), Sina.com and Baidu.com.  

Sohu.com and Sina.com have both adopted Sarbanes-Oxley accounting standards.  The Sarbanes-Oxley Act or SOX is of course the 2002 US federal law enacted “as a reaction to a number of major corporate and accounting scandals.”   

I think it is interesting that popular  Chinese Internet sites would adopt Sarbanes-Oxley.  Is it limited to the accounting standards or does it extend to other provisions to prevent or address corruption like penalties for retaliation against whistleblowers?  In China, whistleblowers have traditionally not been protected, in fact – just the opposite. This past December,  The Beijing News published an investigative report  citing that “public security officials in the City of Xintai in Shandong Province were said to have been institutionalizing residents who persist in their personal campaigns to expose corruption or the unfair seizure of their property.”  They went on to report that “some people said they were committed for up to two years, and several of those interviewed said they were forcibly medicated.”

When this story broke, it justifiably outraged the public and drove “netizens” by the thousands to the Internet.  At Sohu.com, this story was reportedly the fifth most-viewed headline and by the evening, 23,000 Chinese had commented on it.  According to Dr. Charles Zhang, Chairman and CEO of Sohu.com, “People log onto the Internet and Sohu.com because in China, there is no Forbes, Reuters or The Washington Post. Print media was all state controlled and official, and the Internet filled this void.”   

The sad fact is that whistleblowers in China have traditionally paid very dearly for standing up to corruption. We have all read the headlines about what happens to those who become an embarrassment for the government. This includes both those who are committing the crimes as well as the people who seek justice by exposing them.  In 2007, Zheng Xiaoyu, former head of the State Food and Drugs Adminstration was executed for taking bribes to approve medicines. The same year, Zhang Shuhong, a senior executive with a major Mattel supplier, allegedly hung himself  over the lead paint scandal in children’s toys.

“If you want to have a good system of consumer protection, protecting whistleblowers is an essential requirement,” says Wang Hai, a Chinese consumer rights advocate.”

The Internet has an important role to play here in terms of making these incidents public and being a catalyst for change.  In fact, the Government of China just announced a month ago that they’d established a new confidential anti-corruption hotline for whistleblowers.   The program’s Web site generated so much interest, it froze.  In its first week,  11,000 calls were received and 6,000 online reports filed.  According to the Xinhua News Agency, “operation capacity of the website currently can only accommodate 1,000 visits simultaneously, but it will soon have its bandwidth doubled and software updated to avoid any disconnection.” Once capacity issues are addressed, social media can help spread the word about this program and – if earned – encourage trust in this new system, motivating people to come forward and file reports.  

Kudos to Sohu.com and Sina.com for adopting SOX, which is not inexpensive.  If by doing so, they adopt all the provisions in the law, it will position them in a remarkable leadership role in China whereby the culture there around seeking justice may slowly change.  It is the right thing to do and hopefully, their positioning will be emulated by their peers, protect whistleblowers, safeguard consumers and potentially save lives.

Question of the Week: China

Every week the members of the class will answer a new question on this blog. We’ll focus on a different region of the world for each week throughout the rest of the class.  Here is this week’s question:

From your reading and research on China, highlight one key insight or finding you found unique and interesting and discuss what implications it has for brands wanting to use social media to reach an audience in the Chinese market to promote their products or services.

Viral Campaigns – A “Must Do” in Brazil

Before launching a social media communication/advertising/marketing plan in Brazil, brands should take the following into account:

• Social media has taken off at rapid rates;
• Brazilians are spending 19.3 hours online versus 9.8 hours watching TV;
• member communities are huge;  
• Brazilians don’t like to be inundated with superficial advertising such as billboards and radio placements; and
• Brazilians are hugely community oriented people.  

These facts therefore not only change the way in which brands allocate advertising dollars but more importantly alter the format of the ads them self.  It also means that simply adding brand advertisements i.e. banner ads to Orkut (Brazil’s dominate social media platform) is not the answer.  In fact the proverbial social media plan just won’t do it either.  Instead, the solution lies in turning traditional advertising on its head and creating a new path; one that is focused on creating and generating buzz that can then be spread through social media sites with more authenticity and a sense of community.

Seasoned marketers already know that word of mouth and viral marketing is one of – if not the – most effective marketing technique.  According to the United Kingdom’s blogstorm, “viral marketing campaigns are an amazing way to generate a huge amount of buzz and brand awareness whether they are carried out online or offline.”  Given Brazil’s social media influence, online viral campaigns become all the more relevant. 

One Brazilian company – Dreamjob.com.br – has already figured this out with the launch of their “Worst Job in The World” viral campaign. 

The video features beautiful Brazilian models and a large amount of sarcasm (which undoubtedly helps ratings) has been viewed on YouTube 773,716 times and has received 233 comments in the past two months. 

Last year, blogstorm posted “The Top 10 Viral Marketing Campaigns Of All Time” that companies aiming to launch social media campaigns in Brazil can emulate. 

The list includes:

• Nike’s “Touch of Gold”
• Quicksilver’s “Dynamite Surfing”
• Transport for London’s “Do The Test”

While not all companies can – nor am I suggested they should – employee overt sexual innuendos or extreme sports, they should pay attention to the power that viral campaigns can have on the ability to reach intended objectives.

Let’s Give Em Something to Talk About

Ok-Brazil is one of the top countries in the world using social networking. And it ranks highly in the amount of people blogging and engaging in conversations online but what are Brazilians talking about?

How do companies pin point a source of conversation to penetrate through and engage consumers? Can they do this? I believe so, but I think that with so many conversations taking place, brands, organizations, and social sites themselves have to give Brazilians something to talk about. Let’s take Twitter for example, Twittter is extremely popular in the United States for so many reasons but what is interesting about Twitter is that it envokes conversations through its trending topics. These trending topics which are featured on the public timeline not only track what people are talking about but it also draws in people to participate in the conversation about these trending topics-how brilliants. If you are a major corporation and you have a new product; becoming a Twitter trending topic would be a branding gold mine!

Brazilians companies/brands/organizations need to become trending topics in Brazilian social network mediums. The market is so crowded and buzzing with vast conversations that organizations need to give them something to talk about. These organizations need to be the content leaders or else their messages will get drowned out by citizen journalism and the other millions of topics taking place in Brazilian cyberspace.

UPDATE: Why Orkut?

In this article  Loren Baker attempts to explain why Brazilians love Orkut. A couple of reasons stuck out to me:

1. Brazilians with constant Internet access are on the upper echelon of “differencia social.” Although Brazilians are some of the most outgoing people, they are quite cautious when meeting others and inviting them into their circle of friends. By using a service like Orkut, users can prequalify the new friends they make by judging their ability to access the Internet, write and read correctly, and see which friends they share.

2. The fact that Orkut is now associated with Brazil has added flame to the popularity fire. This is a country which is quite proud of their culture, economic position in South America, and World Domination of Soccer (futbol). Now, they are proud to have Orkut as their own.

3. Yakut and pronunciation. Google is beginning to enjoy the same compatibility with the Portuguese language. Not to say Yahoo does not, and Hotmail certainly does, but the Google hip factor has made “goo-gly” a new part of the Brazilian Portuguese language and its association with Orkut is beginning to lead to Google and GMail converts.

This article implied, to me, that Brazilians were a bit on the snooty side. They like Orkut because it’s theirs or so they can judge other before connecting with them online – if they aren’t too good to connect with them in the first place. This may be all true, but I belive that Brazilians are drawn to Orkut due to the language features and the fact that it’s their own. Like Baker stated, Brazilians take pride in their culture and enjoy that Orkut belongs to them.

 Although Portuguese is the official language there are 234 languages catalogued in Brazil.  Orkut featuring fifteen helps Brazilians not only connect with the outside world, but with each other. I’m not suggesting that Orkut incorporate all 234 languages, but I do believe the site benefits from featuring the most commonly used languages in Brazil. This feature enables marketers to reach the Brazilian majority.

 Orkut allows advertisers to reach out to Brazilians in a way they prefer. Every culture or country has preferences on how they like to be communicated with. Orkut is tailored to suit Brazilian needs. Knowing that Brazilians desire to make up their own minds before engaging and favor Orkut, marketing campaigns should use this platform to promote their brands. Brazilians will appreciate their preferences being taken into consideration. This audience should not be viewed as intimidating. A brand should not have an issue penetrating Brazil if their product is good quality, they tailor messaging to suit Brazilians, and take into consideration Brazil’s culture and communication preference.

Imagine There’s No Poluicao Visual – It Won’t Be Easy But We Must Try

Brazilians are reportedly sick of pervasive advertising – both onland and online.  Brazilian Section Chief for Planning and the Environment, Walter Ambrosio da Silva, defines noise and visual pollution as “everything that attacks your sensitivities and influences our minds.”  Feeling bombarded by constant messages is certainly not unique to Brazil but many there  routinely vocalize their opposition to it.

It is everywhere, according to blogger Loren Baker, who describes the landscape this way:  “Outdoor billboards, political radio infomercials, ads painted on walls, cars driving around with loud speakers on top, people selling water or Silvio Santos Tele Sena lotto tickets clapping their hands at the gate outside of the house.”  Due to this visual pollution or Poluicao Visual,  it is no surprise that one reason Orkut remains so popular is because it currently features no advertising.

Brazilians are remarkably community-oriented and self-identify as members of Tribalistas or  or tribos.  They also have the second highest percent reach – 87% – in the social networking category, lagging just behind Canada. One study found that one year ago, “Member Communities” accounted for one in every 15 online minutes globally. The online communities in Brazil account for almost one in every 4 minutes and they are strongly averse to marketers.

It is no wonder then that creative social marketers in Brazil are stepping up to try and address this growing problem and find new ways online to reach this over-saturated audience. Gilberto Junior, the Sao Paulo-based co-founder of Amanaiê,  started Socialsmart and Startupi – a company and blog devoted to Web startups in Brazil, puts it this way: “We address the problem of the lack of relevance in display advertising. We believe advertising can be more engaging and it can be where people already are, instead of trying to take them out of there and lead them to some kind of advertising Web site. Advertising should be viral and spread out spontaneously. Amanaiê, in just 10 months, is already the leader at the social ads market in Brazil. Digital advertising is changing. Digital display ads are working less and [becoming] less relevant over time. The new digital media is that one that engages the costumer. The advertising that is so relevant that the user wants to install it on their public personal profile on a social network.”  The notion of Brazil’s tribalistas embracing brands on their Orkut profiles may be no different than online adoption of popular cause-related campaigns like RED, but as we study the conservation and ecotourism movements in Brazil this week, it is thought provoking to consider a world where all advertising “engages consumers spontaneously” where they are. 

Here in the U.S., Bob Garfield with Advertising Age and author of Chaos Scenario 2.0, has also been talking about the end of advertising as we know it for quite some time in his Chronicles of the Media Revolution series.  In 2007, he suggested that we should begin to envision a world largely without brand advertising.  He predicted that “it’s a world in which Canadian trees are left standing and broadcast towers aren’t. It’s a world in which consumer engagement occurs without consumer interruption, in which listening trumps dictating.  It is a world, to be specific, in which marketing – and even branding – are conducted without much reliance on the 30-sencond spot or glossy spread. Because nobody is much interested in seeing them and because soon they will be largely unnecessary.”  

All this has me thinking about that new world, free of unslightly blight with smarter, more effective marketing and people feeling less under siege by constant Poluicao Visual.  It will be like that proverbial day at the beach without the obligatory plane cruising the skyline with an ad trailing behind it for Ladies Night at the local watering hole. Imagine it.  If Gilberto Junior and Bob Garfield are right – and most agree they are – it won’t be easy but we must try.

Question of the Week: Brazil

Every week the members of the class will answer a new question on this blog. We’ll focus on a different region of the world for each week throughout the rest of the class.  Here is this week’s question:

From your reading and research on Brazil, highlight one key insight or finding you found unique and interesting and discuss what implications it has for brands wanting to use social media to reach an audience in the Brazilian market to promote their products or services.

It Takes a Village

The dark cloud of legal racial segregation has been lifted from South Africa as the country celebrates 15 years of democracy.  The country has experienced a renaissance that has allowed South Africa to flourish economically, politically, and racially.  An emerging black middle class has materialized; however, despite its success, the repenting model nation still remains divided.

A digital divide exists in most developing countries. South Africa is no exception.  Presently, less than 10% of individuals are internet users and less than 400,000 households have broadband access.  The lack of broadband has severely restricted South Africa’s online population.  However, if South Africa plans to become a player on the world stage, it has to build a bridge and connect their population with the rest of the world.

The development of an a new undersea telecommunications cable will be the first step in connecting South Africa.  This development will allow South Africa’s broadband to grow fivefold over the next five years as South Africa gets high-speed broadband internet access.  The internet population is expected to double from 4.5 million to over 9 million by 2014.

The 2010 World Cup will provide the perfect stage for brands to more than market but truly engage with South Africans. Telkom, Africa’s largest integrated communications company and a signature partner of the World Cup, has already begun positioning themselves for internet growth.  They have partnered with Microsoft for over five years to create state of the art computer resource centers known as  “Digital Villages”.  These centers have given schools and communities the ability to harness technology in order to develop computer skills.  “This project provides another opportunity that brings South Africa a step closer to bridging the digital divide,” says Minister Frazer-Moleketi.

It would be beneficial for Mahindra Satyam, a World Cup sponsor, to adopt a strategy similar to Telkom and move beyond just being a sponsor but to create a strategy that will enable it to become an engaged partner. Presently, they are setting up and managing 240 self-help ticketing terminals in South Africa to distribute nearly four million tickets. However, this isn’t enough; they should actively connect with South Africans by donating computers and access to internet through townships, Citizen Post Offices, and internet cafés.  This will align with their rebranding effort as corporate partner after the scandal that has plagued this India company. It won’t remove the dark cloud that exists with their accounting dilemma, but by becoming an entrenched partner, it will allow them to leverage an event with a critical social need to bridge the divide and a template to follow in India for redemption.

SMS = Social Media Strategy (in South Africa)

According to a March 2009 article in the Guardian, 5% of Africans use the internet. South Africa’s internet penetration is about double that, with 5.1 million internet users out of a population of 49 million. This is still only a small percentage of the country’s population and when considering the huge socioeconomic disparities that exist as well, this subgroup is not only unrepresentative of the greater whole but excludes the vast majority. When we talk about social media, we mean that EVERYONE HAS A VOICE. While a web-based campaign may be designed to reach a select demographic, it really goes against the whole idea of social media when 9 out of 10 people can’t participate in the conversation.

That doesn’t mean that social media in South Africa is a nonstarter. It means that web-based social media is an inappropriate approach. But there is ample opportunity with the 42.3 million mobile cellular telephone users. Most every South African can participate in a social media conversation using a cell phone. In the West, we equate social media with the web (as in Web 2.0), but they are not necessarily one and the same. To paraphrase what Clay Shirky said at TED in June, social media innovation can happen anywhere where people take for granted the technology and appreciate that we’re all in this together…it’s not about whiz bang technology [or even web technology].

Most African cell phones are built for voice and SMS. The majority have no cameras or 3G+ capability. But companies can none-the-less communicate with the South African market and the market with them via SMS. Shirky provided an example of how Nigerians used a wisdom of the crowds approach by having the public send SMS messages to monitor elections for possible voting irregularities. This successful model was used in the U.S. a short while later (an interesting example of global technology transfer originating where there is less tech capability). A corporate campaign could be based on this approach, i.e., soliciting consumer opinion by SMS to catalyze consumer involvement with a brand. No video. No social networking. Just pure participation 140 characters at a time.

There is one major challenge that comes along with this strategy, however. There are 11 official languages in South Africa:
>Afrikaans
>English
>IsiNdebele
>IsiXhosa
>IsiZulu
>Sepedi
>Sesotho
>Setswana
>SiSwati
>Tshivenda
>Xitsonga

Languages in South Africa

I would suggest that a social media campaign, if budget limited, start with the top three languages, isiZulu at 23.8%, isiXhosa at 17.6% and Afrikaans at 13.3% for two reasons:
1. Each is used in fairly targeted geographical areas, making it easier to roll out complimentary advertising and generate offline word of mouth.
IsiZulu

IsiXhosa

Afrikaans

2. They are used by up approximately 50% all speakers, maximizing ROI if all languages can not be incorporated into the campaign.
-Gregg Rapaport

Mo the Meerkat: A Face Only A Mother Could Love

Vodacom is the leading and first cellular network in South Africa, with an estimated market share of 58% and more than 23 million customers.  I came across Vodacom while browsing through Zoopy, South Africa’s first video and photo sharing social network.  An online and mobile social media site, Zoopy is doing pretty darn well in South Africa with no signs of letting down!  On June 26 2008, Vodacom purchased a 40% share stake in Zoopy and increased their stake to 75% on February 13 2009.   Holding such a high stake in the company, it’s no wonder that Vodacom receives prime (and sole) ad space on Zoopy.

A new ad campaign by Vodacom (which I originally found on Zoopy) is called “Connect to Fame.”  The campaign announces that you could be “internet famous with Vodacom…It’s easy, Your dance video could become part of the next TV ad” and you could win the grand prize of R300 000 (which equates to a little over $35,000).  Before I go any further, a recap of Vodacom’s recent history and relationship with its consumers is necessary…

In 2006, Mo the Meerkat was released as the new face of Vodacom.  That same year, the Sunday Times 2006 Generation Next survey, which is claimed to be “the most comprehensive research into kids’ brands in the country,” awarded Vodacom with the Coolest Telecommunications Provider Award.  Mo the Meerkat was proclaimed the third Coolest Brand Icon, “after David Beckham, and Simba the Lion”…seriously!?

Even the president of Vodacom was smitten with Mo, short for Maurice.  He was cited as gushing over how the youth just loves the meerkat. Well, why don’t you be the judge.  Check out a couple of ads featuring Mo for yourself:

Suffice it to say, Mo was not as well received by the ‘youthful generation’ of South Africa as the 55 year old president of the company had believed.  A Facebook group entitled “I [expletive] hate the animated meerkat from Vodacom” was established and to date has almost 15,000 members.  Many people have come forward online to tell how much they dislike Mo the meerkat from all of the Vodacom commercials.  Haters even went so far as to plot his death (animated, of course) and post it on YouTube.

All of this online chatter made for high ranking searches galore.  Even now, the first page and first link of a google search for Mo the Meerkat leads one to websites that declare hatred on the creature like “No to Mo...”; “STOOPID MEERKAT.  Kill Mo” and even the YouTube video that plots his death. The power of online social communities is huge.

It is my understanding that Mo was eventually fired … although there is some evidence he could still be linked to the company.  In any case, this leads us to present day where Vodacom has newly launched its campaign “Connect to Fame” in which it is clearly trying (and struggling) to get its name and reputation back with its young audience.

Sorry, Vodacom, but it looks like you failed once again!

The July 2008 campaign launch is not only based on a song that has reached its peak of popularity months ago (“Single Ladies” was great in its heyday!), but it also created a lot of customer anticipation when before actually announcing the details of the campaign leading some customers to believe that rates would be cut or better plans would be presented.  This caused a lot of customers to be very disappointed.

Vodacom is the leading cellular network in South Africa, and luckily has a strong foothold in its market.  However, even though they are a big company, they still must be strategic in their marketing strategies and listen to its customers.  They are on the right track with the idea behind their new campaign by allowing the  consumer to participate in the conversation.  The anticipation leading up to the campaign announcement was very misleading and therefore detrimental to the overall campaign (not to mention based on a song that has already come and gone in the fast paced music-hit industry).  Only time will tell for this ad campaign in particular which ends in August.  But, I have a strong feeling it will sink.

South Africa-GOAL!

Before I touch on my insights of South African social media, I want to point out how fascinating it is that a country has branded itself. Every effort that goes into branding an organization or a product South Africa has done for the country as a whole. Everything from the consistency in using the colors of the flag to creating a slogan, “Alive with possibility.” I have never experienced a country other than caribbean islands which are known for their tourism.

I thought that was very interesting to point out which brings me to the point of this post. As South Africa prepares itself to host the 2010 World Cup I am throughly impressed with how South Africa is using social media to connect with the world. From Blogspots, Twitter, The Facebook, and Flickr South Africa is using various social media outlets to promote the 2010 World Cup. Now, the use of these various online mediums is nothing new. However, what is very insightful is how these social mediums are used to promote not just the 2010 World Cup but South Africa as a brand. How smart to use this opportunity where tourism will be at its highest for South Africa to potentially retain that level of tourism by pushing the South Africa brand. The use of showing pictures of South Africa through Flickr, telling real life stories through blogs, and communicating in real time with potential tourist via Twitter are ways that countries have never connected with the world.

On the Brand South Africa site there is an interactive communications tool kit #mce_temp_url# available for download for potential sponsors and companies that maybe interested in participating in the 2010 World Cup. This tool kit provides updates and marketing information useful to these potential sponsors. This is a great resource for sponsors who need to keep abreast with preparation for the World Cup.

Social media has been used for various aspects of marketing but I believe that South Africa has done a great job of showing how social media can be used to promote a country.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Helpful links:

http://www.imc.org.za/

http://www.imc.org.za/index.php/marketing-materials.html?8b92bc26342e4f8742d4350d3680e5bc=6e057b59504f612d95c8db74b0ea596b

See Ya Later, Afrigator!

Africa’s first social media aggregator tracks more than 1,000 Africa-related blogs, podcasts and news sites.   South African CEO Justin Hartman created Afrigator to provide bloggers and users with an opportunity to present information specifically related to African news, video and content.  Brands that are looking toward South African audiences as a marketing strategy can use Afrigator to post to the several thousand African blogs, podcast, and videos already on the site. 

 Afrigator is a great example of the type service that any brand could use to support the growing number of social media sources around the world.  If brands plan to market their products through blog postings in South Africa, Afrigator’s most notable change on the website features podcasts and videos together with blog posts, making it easier for brands to channel audiences through multiple social media tools. 

 While growing attention toward Afrigator continues to expand social media mediums for South Africans, in a population of over 43 million, only 4 million internet users currently exist according to Internet World Stats.   Even though the South African population is constricted by the lack of broadband, there is still no doubt that any social media tool or online usage in South Africa—through computer or cellular devices—will be a major competitor with other countries once internet is more readily available. 

Teenagers in South Africa are spend more time interacting with friends via social networking sites than in front of the TV,  in part due to the fact that economic downturns have forced more families to stay home and spend money wisely.  In South Africa, the cost of Internet access is set to fall and speed acceleration which is making the internet an increasingly more powerful social media tool for brands targeting South African audiences.

Since the launch of Afrigator in 2007, the site leads as a major competitor in South African online markets as a base for increasing communications in a country with limited online resources.  It presents the kind of marketing that brands can take advantage of through cost effective and innovative social media solutions.

Social Media and the Apartheid

After reading this blog I realized the importance of South Africans participating in social media. Years after the apartheid South Africans remain uneasy and segregated. White South Africans consider leaving the country because they feel their quality of life has declined, Asian South Africans consider moving because they are unsure of their future, and Black South Africans have nowhere else to go – yet feel their quality of life has not improved since the apartheid ended in 1994.

Social media is imperative in order to engage these groups with each other. Although Olckers may disagree I do believe it is possible for this country to progress past its hierarchical thinking. Social media is an excellent platform form for South Africans to engage each other and move on.

 With South Africans avidly participating online with Twitter, Facebook and Afrigator (even Obama has reached out to Africans using social media), I believe that social media will prevail despite what skeptics may suggest.

 It is just a matter of time.

Speak to Me

When the second most popular brand in South Africa happens to be a mobile networking company, there is definitely an opportunity to connect with individuals using social media. MTN is a billion dollar brand that has paved the way for South Africans communicating through cellular phones. MTN Group is head-quartered in Johannesburg, SA, and has 100 million subscribers through its operations in 21 countries. The brand is successful for many reasons and one is their invested interest in the African community. Their statement on their ‘About Us’ states,

As a major communications company, MTN is focused on the African continent. We believe that through access to communication comes economic empowerment.

Their recent campaign in conjunction with the 2010 FIFA World Cup sponsorship has an emphasis on malaria deaths in Africa. They are not only dominant in their market with many competitors they are socially involved with making a difference for the people in their country. They are a company that markets well to South Africans and here are some reasons why.

In 2005, BBC News reported that Africa was seeing the fastest mobile growth rate . The report further expressed that during their survey, 85% of small businesses operated by blacks relied solely on mobile phones for telecommunications and that 62% of them said mobile use was linked to an increase in profit despite higher call costs. These advancements were happening four years ago, and although one would assume that these changes would increase over time, it’s definitely appropriate to take in account the recent economic situations affecting the world globally.  However, Ernst & Young recently looked at the penetration of mobile phones in South Africa and assessed that it’s around 98%. Well Deon Liebenberg, Regional Director for Sub Sahara Africa Research in Motion, definitely took notice. This is the same company behind Blackberry Solutions, who has seen the opportunity for Blackberry devices and Internet to have a stake in this rising market.

Cellular phones definitely set a platform for a brand to generate conversation. Yet, notably you have to take in account what South Africans are talking about, interested in, and how what you or provide will impact them. South Africa is definitely land of diversity. Many cultural and sociological factors are part of the make-up of this region, including the fact that South Africa has 11 officially recognized languages. This can make marketing to this region extremely difficult especially through mobile outreach. Despite this challenge, South Africans are engaged through social communication. Only 6 hours ago, a recent article posted that 5,000 text messages were sent to Obama in anticipation to his upcoming speech Saturday in Ghana. Macon Philips, director of new media at the white house stated,

The text messages had come from more than 64 countries. “South Africa was particularly enthusiastic, we have seen a real spike in activity in South Africa,” he said.

“I think what we found is despite various economic challenges and development challenges, Africans across the continent have used technology to communicate very actively with one another.

Text messaging has even been used to raise awareness about the HIV-epidemic affecting South Africa.

I think one should  understand that the social ramifications of apartheid still linger in the minds of South Africans. However, they are prideful and vocal about the changes they want for their country. South Africa was the first country in Africa to hold their first political debate on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and other interactive websites reported by Rebecca Wanjiku for Computerworld Kenya. The religious politician Desmond Tutu, coined as the messiah of Africa during the apartheid era has also embraced social media tools such as Facebook to convey his messages and advice to Africa and America.

While browsing blogs on Afrigator and looking at the impact of MixIt. I definitely think brands have an opportunity to connect and engage a South African audience.  Despite misconceptions, I believe that it’s a very diverse user group connected through the Internet and with mobile access. The privileged and fortunate population of South Africa are not the only ones utilizing social media to voice their opinions and thoughts. A student at the University of Cape Town challenged statistics about mobile usage and visibility in low-income communities.  He found that in that particular community about 83% of the youth he surveyed had some form of Internet use and 47% utilized mobile instant messaging applications in some capacity. Now this still proves their is a disparity between the “have and the have-not” people in South Africa; however, I don’t think this notion would be particular different in viewing any other country.

In essence, South Africa is a country of opportunity for brands using social media if you’re engaging, invested, and have a genuine message or contribution.