The percentage of Facebook budgets allocated toward social ads rose to 23% -- up from 5% in the past 12 months, according to data released Monday -- but a look at the change in corporate firewall policies could influence a shift in budget allocations to mobile by the end of this year. Marin Software predicts that by the end of this year social ads, or Marketplace Ads supported by Sponsored Stories, will account for nearly half of brands' Facebook ad budgets. These ads are traceable through application programming interfaces (APIs). The other half, the demographically targeted ads, do not incorporate the social graph. The company supports Marketplace Ads sold in an auction-like model. Unlike other Marketplace Ads that operate similarly to traditional display ad units, social ads on Facebook include site user endorsements in the ad copy. Consumer engagement with Facebook ads rose in the past year -- about 50% -- as measured by click-through rates (CTR). In the past year, the cost per click (CPC) of social ads increased 86%, while the CPC of Marketplace Ads fell 15%. Consumer engagement with Facebook ads -- as measured by click-through rates -- rose 50% compared with the last 12 months, implying a boost in overall ad relevance. Marin analysts believe Facebook's move to increase ad relevance through a focus on social ads and the introduction of Sponsored Stories is paying off. Yes -- but how will the growing number of corporations blocking access to Facebook behind a firewall during a typical workday change the performance of campaigns and the perception of consumers? That is something Marin's analysis didn't address. Facebook ads continue to take market share, but consumer use continues to decline during week days at an average rate of 2.8% per quarter since Q1 2011, according to the State of the Web study, a security research report published by Zscaler ThreatLabZ, the research arm of Cloud Security Company Zscaler. Enterprise companies continue to enforce policies on social networking, placing more controls on what is accessed online by employees. Policy blocks from users attempting to access social networking sites rose from 2.46% in January 2012 to 3.99% in March. Blocks from users attempting to post or write content to social networking sites increased from 0.01% in January to 0.18% in March, according to the report. Will the block make changes in the dynamics of online marketing by prompting consumers to pick up their mobile phones to access Facebook? Marin VP of Marketing Matt Lawson said Facebook's recent move into the mobile ad space -- allowing social ads, sponsored stories, to serve up in news feeds on mobile devices -- points to the importance of ad units on mobile devices.
In the wake of Facebook’s $1 billion deal for Instagram, the spotlight has fallen on a new crop of video-sharing apps moving up the charts like Viddy and SocialCam. The photo and video category as a whole has been the fastest-growing in apps time spent per active user between October and March, up 89% to 231 minutes. Other rapidly rising categories include music (72%), productivity (66%), social networking (54%), and entertainment (40%), according to new data from app analytics and advertising firm Flurry. “Trained by the sharing behavior of Facebook, and enabled by a confluence of underlying technology like built-in HD video cameras, hardy on-device processors, increased network bandwidth, cloud storage and user-friendly applications like Viddy and SocialCam, social video apps are taking off,” wrote Peter Farago, VP marketing, Flurry, in a blog post today. While these apps have gained greater attention lately, he points out that time spent with photo and video apps has been building for some time -- with growth up 166% since July 2011, and 141% since March 2011. That year-over-year growth rate is twice the 71% increase in time spent watching YouTube on the desktop Web. Actual minutes spent viewing video online is still well ahead of apps, at 425 total minutes versus 231 in March. But the gap is closing. A year ago, Internet video consumption on YouTube outpaced that on iOS and Android apps by more than a 4-to-1 ratio. “During 2012, however, is where things get interesting. As online video consumption dropped by 10%, mobile app video consumption increased by another 52%,” noted Farago. While it can’t be assumed that mobile video apps are cannibalizing YouTube, Flurry views the shift as a sign of disruption. “Think of it this way: With every mobile video you share of friends, family, vacations, parties and weddings, you are likely loading another bullet in the chamber for Web 3.0. For YouTube, it appears they need to run -- outrun -- your gun,” states Farago. Of course, if HTML5 development shifts mobile media consumption back in favor of the mobile Web, YouTube will have the last laugh. The Flurry data also highlighted the growing competition that games face from other app categories, especially photo and video titles, in terms of time spent. In addition to Viddy and SocialCam, it pointed to “apps with momentum” including Path, Skout, Evenote and Spotify. It’s not quite time to write off games, considering that they still dominate the top 10 app charts in iTunes and Google Play. Yesterday “Angry Birds” creator Rovio reported 2011 revenue of $106 million. If that figure tumbles in 2012, or growth slows, that would surely be a sign that game apps are no longer flying high. The Flurry findings were based on a sample of 8 million active mobile app users across all app categories. The company's analytics software is used in 180,000 apps for some 67,000 companies across iOS, Android, HTML5, Windows Phone and BlackBerry.
Social may have established itself as a brand-building requirement, but -- as some marketers have learned the hard way -- it can’t replace other channels yet. “Brand-building strategy and social strategy are inextricably intertwined,” according to Forrester analyst Tracy Stokes. Yet, “social efforts do not represent a stand-alone solution and need the scale and consistency of paid and owned media.” According to Forrester, a Facebook page does not define “social engagement.” Rather, it is a way to communicate directly with consumers on their terms, whether that’ involves reading a blog, sharing a YouTube video, or posting to a social networking site. As Stokes lays out in a new report, social can help brands build consumer trust, differentiate themselves through emotional connections with consumers, and exploit the loyalty of dedicated fans. Yet communicating through social networks is not scalable, Stokes finds. “Marketers and social marketing agencies told us that social media cannot reach critical mass in the same way that paid broadcast media can, and it would defeat the uniqueness of the channel.” Indeed, Facebook recently warned advertisers that just 16% of fans see organic content posted by brands. “JetBlue, a leading proponent of social media, understands this,” Stokes notes. “When it comes to a big launch like a new service to Dallas, the airline still turns to TV broadcast for broad impact and awareness.” What’s more, messaging through social media is too fragmented, Forrester finds. Social media’s many voices fragment a brand’s message like an old-fashioned game of telephone, so paid and owned media are still essential to define a brand message. Meanwhile, Forrester found that that too many marketers say that they are working on their social strategy, but it is disconnected from their overall branding efforts, apart from logos and collateral. “Forrester believes that to be successful, 21st century brands must point their brand compass in the direction that helps them build a brand that is trusted, remarkable, unmistakable, and essential,” said Stokes. While its specific applicability is still debatable, marketers appear to be sold on social. As a recent Forrester survey found, one out of five chief marketing officers said they are personally accountable for social efforts. In fact, among digital channels, they view social media as second only to the Web in affecting branding, and second only to search in affecting brand-building efforts. Overall, of the marketing leaders that Forrester surveyed, 92% believe that social media has fundamentally changed how consumers engage with brands, while three out of four marketing leaders surveyed said they were changing their marketing strategy as a result of social media. That said, while two-thirds of marketers claimed to have a clearly defined social strategy, only half viewed their social efforts as strategically integrated into their 2012 brand-building plans.
CBS is trying to establish a social media locus for conversation and interaction related to its programming across all dayparts as networks look to establish second-screen applications. “CBS Connect” looks to aggregate tweets and Facebook updates for programs ranging from “Price Is Right” to “Person of Interest.” Skype is the sponsor of the hub as group video conversation opportunities are available. Ipad, iPhone and Android users will be able to use a mobile version of CBS.com/connect. The site also looks to facilitate live chats with CBS stars and other talent, where questions can be submitted via Facebook and Twitter. A live chat with “Survivor” Jeff Probst is scheduled for May 9. Another is on tap during the East Coast season finale episode of “NCIS: Los Angeles” on May 15. CBS has looked to use social media as a venue for fan-talent interaction during tweet and social sweeps weeks. Marc DeBevoise, a senior vice president at CBS Interactive, stated: “Instead of continuing to confine our social initiatives to special event weeks, we wanted to recognize and take advantage of the fact that every CBS program is an ongoing social experience.”
Kimberly-Clark's Kotex Natural Balance brand is standing up for what's real. The feminine hygiene brand is tapping comedienne Heather McDonald to star in a series of online videos extending an integrated effort that launched in February. The campaign also mines social media to get women to share their thoughts about what’s real and what’s not so real about the claims, innovations and storylines they see in today’s feminine care ads. "The Stand Up For What's Real" campaign will include a tour to various urban markets where McDonald, and perhaps local comedy talent will riff on women's issues and clichés. This approach isn't that new for Kimberly-Clark, which has made it a point of differentiation to make fun of clichés in marketing of products that deal with touchy physiological subjects, and to avoid the euphemisms to which those clichés (women in white, playing sports and running through fields of flowers) subscribe. The company has done similar approach for its other line, U by Kotex, whose marketing included a web-based spokesperson relationship with the Kardashian sisters who talked about their own experiences with “that time of the month” and other things online. The company has also taken a straightforward approach to marketing its Depend adult hygiene product. The new series of videos for Kotex Natural Balance was produced by Alloy Media + Marketing's by its new in-house studio division, Generate Studios, and will run on Alloy digital entertainment networks, including Alloys other recently acquired property women’s digital network B5Media, which includes TheGloss.com, Blisstree.com and Mommyish.com. In the videos, McDonald makes fun of feminine product advertising that focuses on fantastical technology and product benefits that somehow seems more appropriate to a video game or the engine of a sports car than to feminine products. In the new web video series on the Kotex Natural Balance Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/kotex) and YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/kotexvideos) she makes fun of jargon like nano-breeze maxi pad technology invites women to join in the conversation. McDonald is best known for her role as writer and story producer on E!’s Chelsea Lately. “Hide your trampolines, America, because if a woman on her period is nearby, her pad is scientifically engineered to make her three times more likely to jump on it, thanks to its new Elastibounce Lining technology,” is one riff. Women can upload their own videos and comments on the Kotex Natural Balance Facebook page, with submissions being the basis for five other videos starring McDonald. It will also serve as the basis for material for the live "Stand Up For What’s Real" comedy tour later this year. Kotex senior brand manager, Kanchan Patkar tells Marketing Daily that the Kimberly-Clark redefined the Kotex brand in late September last year, with an integrated media campaign starting this year. The company launched its brand for teens, "U by Kotex," last year with a digital-centric campaign that had the Kardashians talking about issues. "The insight is that as a group, young women are tired of clichés about lifestyle and technology." Says Patkar, who adds that Kotex Natural Balance is meant to appeal to young women. She says the brand's customer base has a median age of 35. "But this messaging is meant to target 14 year olds and older," she says. "All the way up to women in their 30's. And McDonald appeals to both age groups. She's very funny, has her own style, and will engage young girls as well as those in their 20's and 30's." McDonald also added a lot of her own flavor to the videos, but that the content is driven by what young girls are irked by in marketing. "We have so much research on what sorts of things are interesting to young girls, and those are the guiding the topics."
The percentage of Facebook budgets allocated toward social ads rose to 23% -- up from 5% in the past 12 months, according to data released Monday -- but a look at the change in corporate firewall policies could influence a shift in budget allocations to mobile by the end of this year. Marin Software predicts that by the end of this year social ads, or Marketplace Ads supported by Sponsored Stories, will account for nearly half of brands' Facebook ad budgets. These ads are traceable through application programming interfaces (APIs). The other half, the demographically targeted ads, do not incorporate the social graph. The company supports Marketplace Ads sold in an auction-like model. Unlike other Marketplace Ads that operate similarly to traditional display ad units, social ads on Facebook include site user endorsements in the ad copy. Consumer engagement with Facebook ads rose in the past year -- about 50% -- as measured by click-through rates (CTR). In the past year, the cost per click (CPC) of social ads increased 86%, while the CPC of Marketplace Ads fell 15%. Consumer engagement with Facebook ads -- as measured by click-through rates -- rose 50% compared with the last 12 months, implying a boost in overall ad relevance. Marin analysts believe Facebook's move to increase ad relevance through a focus on social ads and the introduction of Sponsored Stories is paying off. Yes -- but how will the growing number of corporations blocking access to Facebook behind a firewall during a typical workday change the performance of campaigns and the perception of consumers? That is something Marin's analysis didn't address. Facebook ads continue to take market share, but consumer use continues to decline during week days at an average rate of 2.8% per quarter since Q1 2011, according to the State of the Web study, a security research report published by Zscaler ThreatLabZ, the research arm of Cloud Security Company Zscaler. Enterprise companies continue to enforce policies on social networking, placing more controls on what is accessed online by employees. Policy blocks from users attempting to access social networking sites rose from 2.46% in January 2012 to 3.99% in March. Blocks from users attempting to post or write content to social networking sites increased from 0.01% in January to 0.18% in March, according to the report. Will the block make changes in the dynamics of online marketing by prompting consumers to pick up their mobile phones to access Facebook? Marin VP of Marketing Matt Lawson said Facebook's recent move into the mobile ad space -- allowing social ads, sponsored stories, to serve up in news feeds on mobile devices -- points to the importance of ad units on mobile devices.
In the wake of Facebook’s $1 billion deal for Instagram, the spotlight has fallen on a new crop of video-sharing apps moving up the charts like Viddy and SocialCam. The photo and video category as a whole has been the fastest-growing in apps time spent per active user between October and March, up 89% to 231 minutes. Other rapidly rising categories include music (72%), productivity (66%), social networking (54%), and entertainment (40%), according to new data from app analytics and advertising firm Flurry. “Trained by the sharing behavior of Facebook, and enabled by a confluence of underlying technology like built-in HD video cameras, hardy on-device processors, increased network bandwidth, cloud storage and user-friendly applications like Viddy and SocialCam, social video apps are taking off,” wrote Peter Farago, VP marketing, Flurry, in a blog post today. While these apps have gained greater attention lately, he points out that time spent with photo and video apps has been building for some time -- with growth up 166% since July 2011, and 141% since March 2011. That year-over-year growth rate is twice the 71% increase in time spent watching YouTube on the desktop Web. Actual minutes spent viewing video online is still well ahead of apps, at 425 total minutes versus 231 in March. But the gap is closing. A year ago, Internet video consumption on YouTube outpaced that on iOS and Android apps by more than a 4-to-1 ratio. “During 2012, however, is where things get interesting. As online video consumption dropped by 10%, mobile app video consumption increased by another 52%,” noted Farago. While it can’t be assumed that mobile video apps are cannibalizing YouTube, Flurry views the shift as a sign of disruption. “Think of it this way: With every mobile video you share of friends, family, vacations, parties and weddings, you are likely loading another bullet in the chamber for Web 3.0. For YouTube, it appears they need to run -- outrun -- your gun,” states Farago. Of course, if HTML5 development shifts mobile media consumption back in favor of the mobile Web, YouTube will have the last laugh. The Flurry data also highlighted the growing competition that games face from other app categories, especially photo and video titles, in terms of time spent. In addition to Viddy and SocialCam, it pointed to “apps with momentum” including Path, Skout, Evenote and Spotify. It’s not quite time to write off games, considering that they still dominate the top 10 app charts in iTunes and Google Play. Yesterday “Angry Birds” creator Rovio reported 2011 revenue of $106 million. If that figure tumbles in 2012, or growth slows, that would surely be a sign that game apps are no longer flying high. The Flurry findings were based on a sample of 8 million active mobile app users across all app categories. The company's analytics software is used in 180,000 apps for some 67,000 companies across iOS, Android, HTML5, Windows Phone and BlackBerry.
Social may have established itself as a brand-building requirement, but -- as some marketers have learned the hard way -- it can’t replace other channels yet. “Brand-building strategy and social strategy are inextricably intertwined,” according to Forrester analyst Tracy Stokes. Yet, “social efforts do not represent a stand-alone solution and need the scale and consistency of paid and owned media.” According to Forrester, a Facebook page does not define “social engagement.” Rather, it is a way to communicate directly with consumers on their terms, whether that’ involves reading a blog, sharing a YouTube video, or posting to a social networking site. As Stokes lays out in a new report, social can help brands build consumer trust, differentiate themselves through emotional connections with consumers, and exploit the loyalty of dedicated fans. Yet communicating through social networks is not scalable, Stokes finds. “Marketers and social marketing agencies told us that social media cannot reach critical mass in the same way that paid broadcast media can, and it would defeat the uniqueness of the channel.” Indeed, Facebook recently warned advertisers that just 16% of fans see organic content posted by brands. “JetBlue, a leading proponent of social media, understands this,” Stokes notes. “When it comes to a big launch like a new service to Dallas, the airline still turns to TV broadcast for broad impact and awareness.” What’s more, messaging through social media is too fragmented, Forrester finds. Social media’s many voices fragment a brand’s message like an old-fashioned game of telephone, so paid and owned media are still essential to define a brand message. Meanwhile, Forrester found that that too many marketers say that they are working on their social strategy, but it is disconnected from their overall branding efforts, apart from logos and collateral. “Forrester believes that to be successful, 21st century brands must point their brand compass in the direction that helps them build a brand that is trusted, remarkable, unmistakable, and essential,” said Stokes. While its specific applicability is still debatable, marketers appear to be sold on social. As a recent Forrester survey found, one out of five chief marketing officers said they are personally accountable for social efforts. In fact, among digital channels, they view social media as second only to the Web in affecting branding, and second only to search in affecting brand-building efforts. Overall, of the marketing leaders that Forrester surveyed, 92% believe that social media has fundamentally changed how consumers engage with brands, while three out of four marketing leaders surveyed said they were changing their marketing strategy as a result of social media. That said, while two-thirds of marketers claimed to have a clearly defined social strategy, only half viewed their social efforts as strategically integrated into their 2012 brand-building plans.
CBS is trying to establish a social media locus for conversation and interaction related to its programming across all dayparts as networks look to establish second-screen applications. “CBS Connect” looks to aggregate tweets and Facebook updates for programs ranging from “Price Is Right” to “Person of Interest.” Skype is the sponsor of the hub as group video conversation opportunities are available. Ipad, iPhone and Android users will be able to use a mobile version of CBS.com/connect. The site also looks to facilitate live chats with CBS stars and other talent, where questions can be submitted via Facebook and Twitter. A live chat with “Survivor” Jeff Probst is scheduled for May 9. Another is on tap during the East Coast season finale episode of “NCIS: Los Angeles” on May 15. CBS has looked to use social media as a venue for fan-talent interaction during tweet and social sweeps weeks. Marc DeBevoise, a senior vice president at CBS Interactive, stated: “Instead of continuing to confine our social initiatives to special event weeks, we wanted to recognize and take advantage of the fact that every CBS program is an ongoing social experience.”
Kimberly-Clark's Kotex Natural Balance brand is standing up for what's real. The feminine hygiene brand is tapping comedienne Heather McDonald to star in a series of online videos extending an integrated effort that launched in February. The campaign also mines social media to get women to share their thoughts about what’s real and what’s not so real about the claims, innovations and storylines they see in today’s feminine care ads. "The Stand Up For What's Real" campaign will include a tour to various urban markets where McDonald, and perhaps local comedy talent will riff on women's issues and clichés. This approach isn't that new for Kimberly-Clark, which has made it a point of differentiation to make fun of clichés in marketing of products that deal with touchy physiological subjects, and to avoid the euphemisms to which those clichés (women in white, playing sports and running through fields of flowers) subscribe. The company has done similar approach for its other line, U by Kotex, whose marketing included a web-based spokesperson relationship with the Kardashian sisters who talked about their own experiences with “that time of the month” and other things online. The company has also taken a straightforward approach to marketing its Depend adult hygiene product. The new series of videos for Kotex Natural Balance was produced by Alloy Media + Marketing's by its new in-house studio division, Generate Studios, and will run on Alloy digital entertainment networks, including Alloys other recently acquired property women’s digital network B5Media, which includes TheGloss.com, Blisstree.com and Mommyish.com. In the videos, McDonald makes fun of feminine product advertising that focuses on fantastical technology and product benefits that somehow seems more appropriate to a video game or the engine of a sports car than to feminine products. In the new web video series on the Kotex Natural Balance Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/kotex) and YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/kotexvideos) she makes fun of jargon like nano-breeze maxi pad technology invites women to join in the conversation. McDonald is best known for her role as writer and story producer on E!’s Chelsea Lately. “Hide your trampolines, America, because if a woman on her period is nearby, her pad is scientifically engineered to make her three times more likely to jump on it, thanks to its new Elastibounce Lining technology,” is one riff. Women can upload their own videos and comments on the Kotex Natural Balance Facebook page, with submissions being the basis for five other videos starring McDonald. It will also serve as the basis for material for the live "Stand Up For What’s Real" comedy tour later this year. Kotex senior brand manager, Kanchan Patkar tells Marketing Daily that the Kimberly-Clark redefined the Kotex brand in late September last year, with an integrated media campaign starting this year. The company launched its brand for teens, "U by Kotex," last year with a digital-centric campaign that had the Kardashians talking about issues. "The insight is that as a group, young women are tired of clichés about lifestyle and technology." Says Patkar, who adds that Kotex Natural Balance is meant to appeal to young women. She says the brand's customer base has a median age of 35. "But this messaging is meant to target 14 year olds and older," she says. "All the way up to women in their 30's. And McDonald appeals to both age groups. She's very funny, has her own style, and will engage young girls as well as those in their 20's and 30's." McDonald also added a lot of her own flavor to the videos, but that the content is driven by what young girls are irked by in marketing. "We have so much research on what sorts of things are interesting to young girls, and those are the guiding the topics."
Is reality broken? I’ve been grappling with the idea ever since reading “Reality is Broken” by Jane McGonigal, who argues that games provide a better, more motivating version of life than reality. Almost inherent in her description of gameplay is the social component, as the vast majority of her examples involve games people play together -- usually virtually. Much of the book is enlightening, such as when McGonigal discusses how some real-world movements and daily routines have become more meaningful by judiciously incorporating game mechanics. Elsewhere, however, I found myself sulking over her vision of reality. Below are ten passages from McGonigal, followed by why they are so troubling: 1) “The real world just doesn’t offer up as easily the carefully designed pleasures, the thrilling challenges, and the powerful social bonding afforded by virtual environments. Reality doesn’t motivate us as effectively. Reality isn’t engineered to maximize our potential. Reality wasn’t designed from the bottom up to make us happy. And so, there is a growing perception in the gaming community: Reality, compared to games, is broken.” Why must we always be happy? This is part of a bigger social problem. Sprinkles Cupcakes was designed from the ground up to make us happy, but it’s a bad idea to eat there daily. Filling out timesheets isn’t fulfilling, but I can put my happiness on hold briefly to support my colleagues. 2) “We are starving, and our games are feeding us.” Games often feed us empty calories. 3) “Games make us happy because they are hard work that we choose for ourselves, and it turns out that almost nothing makes us happier than good, hard work.” It’s twisted logic to call gaming the opposite of depression. Gaming isn’t the same as actual work. The purpose matters. Saving a fictitious planet is different from supporting a family. 4) “We’re much happier enlivening time rather than killing time.” Playing games doesn’t always enliven time. It’s often a drug hit or cheap thrill compared to fulfillment from doing something meaningful. 5) “Compared with games, reality is depressing. Games focus our energy, with relentless optimism, on something we’re good at and enjoy.” This statement is depressing. How does one get out of bed in the morning thinking like this? 6) “…Beyond a certain playing threshold—for most gamers, it seems to be somewhere around twenty hours a week—they start to wonder if they’re perhaps missing out on real life.” It’s hardly shocking, but that is a high threshold to trigger gamer’s remorse. 7) “Gamers, without a doubt, are reinventing what we think of as our daily community infrastructure. They’re experimenting with new ways to create social capital, and they’re developing habits that provide more social bonding and connectivity than any bowling league ever could.” Bowling is a sport -- a physical activity that brings people together face to face. Similarly, my Madden NFL prowess does not give me more social capital than Eli Manning. 8) “…It’s no accident that Halo players are so inclined toward collective efforts. It’s the direct result of the game’s epic, and awe-inspiring, aesthetic. Today’s best game designers are experts at giving individuals the chance to be a part of something bigger…” Collective efforts are not inherently positive. Nazi Germany, the Cultural Revolution, and Al Qaeda all offered ways for people to be part of a larger movement. 9) “Jean M. Twenge, a professor of psychology and the author of Generation Me, has persuasively argued that the youngest generations today—particularly anyone born after 1980—are, in her words, ‘more miserable than ever before.’” Aren’t these the people who have grown up playing digital games? 10) “How would it feel to get constant, real-time positive feedback in our real lives, whenever we’re tackling obstacles and working hard? Would we be more motivated? Would we feel more rewarded? Would we challenge ourselves more?” If we got a “like” or “+1” for everything we did, we’d start setting expectations too high. Did you ever post something on Facebook you were sure would be “liked” a lot but was largely ignored? It’s a brief letdown, and too many such disappointments can add up if one tries too hard to get a response. Despite the critiques, there’s plenty to love in the book. Consider one of her conclusions: “We have to be thoughtful about where and when we apply game-like feedback systems. If everything in life becomes about tackling harder challenges, scoring more points, and reaching higher levels, we run the risk of becoming too focused on the gratifications of positive feedback. And the last thing we want is to lose our ability to enjoy an activity for its own sake.” I could like, +1, tweet, pin, tumble and stumble that passage. I could send McGonigal a digital or physical sticker commending it. I could create a badge for her website. None of that, I hope, remotely approaches that feeling of accomplishment she must have savored when releasing her idea to the world.