The automaker, which by now could probably publish a textbook on social-media launch strategies for cars and crossovers, is starting up a new social-focused campaign for the new 2013 Fusion, the third-generation of the vehicle. "Random Acts of Fusion" features TV host and producer Ryan Seacrest. Said Jim Farley, Ford group VP of marketing, in a statement, “Combining social media, entertainment and unexpected consumer experiences will allow us to connect with audiences through every type of media, introducing Fusion’s profile larger than ever.” The campaign, like "Fiesta Movement" and "Escape Routes" before it, uses consumers as evangelists to talk about Ford vehicles to peers through social-media platforms. The new effort for the 2013 Fusion also uses radio and broadcast media. Central to the plan is that Ford will use a fleet of around 100 of the new Fusions for short-term loans to 1,000 or so people chosen for their personal stories. And unlike the earlier social-media driven efforts for Fiesta and Escape, Ford is aiming to give a much broader range of people -- not just influencers -- an early taste of the new Fusion, per Crystal Worthem, manager of Ford brand content and alliances. The company on Tuesday launched a video on its Facebook page featuring Seacrest, who explains that after 1,000 people sign on to watch the video, the program moves to the next level, where the nuts and bolts of the campaign are revealed. Says Worthem, “Consumers will have to work together to unlock the story, and as the program evolves, will have a chance to see for themselves how Fusion is able to transform the lives of the people who drive it.” The company says the effort will star “personalities from consumers to celebrities as the program crisscrosses the country introducing the all-new Fusion to millions.” Worthem tells Marketing Daily that Seacrest was the perfect choice for the program. "We have had a relationship with him by way of ‘American Idol’ for the past couple of years. So he has been working with us and delivering the Ford message for a while." She adds that his core fan base and those Ford is trying to reach with the Fusion campaign are aligned. Ford will do more with Seacrest as he has gone from host to producer to owning a cable production company. "The opportunities to work with him are endless," says Worthem, adding that Ford will do a lot of product placement and integration of the Fusion in TV shows and movies, as the car is visually striking, and much different the previous, second-generation Fusion.
Connecting the Internet with television viewing through mobile devices, the discovery media company Shazam will provide NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, with a social TV experience during the 2012 London Olympics. On NBCUniversal properties -- NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, Bravo and CNBC -- U.S. viewers can use the Shazam app on their mobile device to view polls and share on Twitter and Facebook, unlock unique content about athletes, and gain up-to-the-minute information on results and medal counts. Millions are expected to watch coverage this summer. The deal comes at a time when broadcasters and social media are more comfortable collaborating. In the United States, 88% of tablet owners and 86% of smartphone owners use their device while watching TV in a 30-day period, according to Nielsen. Shazam's goal to expand 30- and 60-second spots into a three-minute video or experience on Twitter and Facebook will likely tie brand sponsorships into the agreement. It's not clear whether the network will use the partnership to run 15-second tune-in spots. It is clear, however, that viewers can tap the Shazam app in front of the TV and in two seconds be transported to another experience across the Internet. "We see the strategy as taking a 30-second TV spot and turning it into three minutes or more of engagement on the Web," said Evan Krauss, EVP of advertising at Shazam. Nabisco launched a social media campaign on TV for Wheat Thins late last week using Shazam to spread the word on Twitter and Facebook. Through Shazam's technology, the audio in the television ad identifies the sound and links to a pre-written Twitter post. Those who tweet the post get a free sample of the product. Krauss said between 60% and 90% of consumers who initially engage with a Shazam ad take further action, such as tweeting a post or watching a video. Many consumers come back to the platform to explore the brand's advertisement up to three days later. Consumer packaged-goods companies tend to do well with coupons. Movie studios do well with trailers, times and ticket purchases. The "Men In Black 3" TV trailer built on Fandango gave consumers movie times in relation to their location, and allowed them to purchase the tickets. More than 80% of the time, consumers will spend more time with the trailer on the second screen. Backend analytics give advertisers aggregate numbers of people who "Touch to Shazam" on a smartphone or iPad. Advertisers also have access to reports that monitor each second. Krauss said "overlaying these numbers on top of TV schedules gives brands insight into markets, programs and commercial pods that drive engagement in spots."
Men’s aftershave brand Brut is launching a campaign that, like 2010's Brut Slap and last year's Brut News Network (BNN), offers a new spin on machismo. The TV and digital campaign, via Oradell, N.J.-based Sigma Group, is -- like the previous offbeat humorous campaigns -- focused on young guys with a digital media orientation. The campaign for the division of Helen of Troy, Ltd.'s Idelle Labs does, however, include two 15–second spots showcasing how Brut embodies “The Essence of Man.” The ads point to how society makes guys conceal their atavism -- but how, by wearing Brut they can bring out their inner "he man." One of the ads has a guy being harangued by his wife (or girlfriend) to hurry up because they’ll be late. The instant he applies Brut, she runs back into the bathroom, suddenly very pregnant. As is the goldfish, and the beagle. The media buy includes male-targeted networks in the U.S. and Canada such as Discovery, History and Spike. Online banner ads are featured on similar male-focused Web sites including Playboy.com, BleacherReport.com, BreakMedia.com, CollegeHumor.com and OfficialManCard.com. Each ad reinforces the central idea of Brut as an enhancement to maleness. Additional consumer engagement elements include a season-long partnership with Minor League Baseball and an August sponsorship of the New York-area Warrior Dash, an 5K obstacle course event through harsh terrain. The MiLB partnership was brokered by Norwalk, Conn.-based Octagon Marketing. The company says the purpose of the sponsorship is to engage fathers and kids with in-stadium activation elements such as the “Brut Handslap,” challenging men to compete in a creative handshake challenge. Last year’s BNN on Facebook.com/Brut was a hosted news format with original video and “news” that was part sports, part humor. The company has aimed at younger males for its efforts with a heavy push on social media and interactive platforms like 2010’s “slapification” app on BrutSlap.com.
SocialVibe hired John Capano as chief marketing officer, Brett Lofgren as chief revenue officer and Bob Lonigro as vice president of sales.
From a public relations point of view, the ascendance of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg to its board of directors may say more about the company in the breach than in the appointment. To wit: How could a company in A.D. 2012, whose primary customer is female, heretofore be one of only 11% of Fortune 500 companies without a woman on the board? The California State Teachers’ Retirement System asked Facebook in February to add a woman to its board, reports the Los Angeles Times’Jessica Guynn, and the advocacy group Face It has had a petition urging Facebook to include women and minorities. Women’s rights group Ultraviolet also has had a petition going. Anupam Palit, head of research at GreenCrest Capital, applauds the appointment of Sandberg but tells Guynn there is a “bigger issue” with Facebook. “The company has been criticized for not having women and minorities in leadership positions. It seems that their answer to everything is always Sheryl Sandberg,” says Palit, who adds that the company seems to react to criticism rather than getting out in front of an issue before the media sets its sights on it. Sandberg joined Facebook in March 2008 after having served as vp of global online sales & operations at Google from November 2001 to March 2008, according to her bio at Bloomberg Businessweek. Before that she was chief of staff at the Treasury Department, a management consultant with McKinsey and an economist for The World Bank. She currently sits on the board of Walt Disney Co. “Sandberg has visibly earned the position during her tenure, building and running the social network’s business operations, which include ‘sales, marketing, business development, human resources, public policy and communications’ as Facebook has grown to be worth billions,” postsTechCrunch’s Eric Eldon. “She’s also become a top advocate for female leadership in the workplace, writing and speaking on the topic for years -- particularly on how she has managed such a high-profile job while having a family.” As one commenter to Eldon’s story puts it: “I'd be impressed finding out that she can even manage to sleep sometimes.” “Sheryl has been my partner in running Facebook and has been central to our growth and success over the years,” says founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a statement. “Her understanding of our mission and long-term opportunity, and her experience both at Facebook and on public company boards make her a natural fit for our board.” The Wall Street Journal’s Shayndi Raice and Joann S. Lublin write that the appointment “is likely to have the effect of keeping Ms. Sandberg — who is worth $1.4 billion from her 44 million shares of Facebook restricted shares and options -- deeply vested in the social network.” Recruiters tell them that she has been “wooed for CEO” positions in the tech and media worlds, including that of the New York Times. Other Facebook board members are Washington Post CEO Donald Graham,; venture capitalist Marc Andreessen; Accel Partners general partner Jim Breyer; Clarium Capital founder Peter Thiel; Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and Erskine Bowles, president emeritus of the University of North Carolina. “When the New Yorker’s Ken Auletta asked Zuckerberg why there were no women on his company’s board of directors, he replied, ‘I’m going to find people who are helpful, and I don’t particularly care what gender they are or what company they are,’” Bianca Bosker pointed out in a “Women In Tech” blog on Huffington Post earlier this year. “I’m not filling the board with check boxes. Others would say that it’s Mark’s sandbox, and he controls the bucket and shovel, too. Everyone else is there for companionship. While Zuckerberg outright owns about 28% of Facebook, he controls 57% of all shareholder votes due to its two-class stock structure. “To put it simply, he can do whatever he wants with Facebook, and you, the shareholder, don't have a say -- not even if you team up with every other outside shareholder in the company,” Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik pointed out in May. When all is said and done, though, no one seems to dispute Zuckerberg did something very right yesterday.
The automaker, which by now could probably publish a textbook on social-media launch strategies for cars and crossovers, is starting up a new social-focused campaign for the new 2013 Fusion, the third-generation of the vehicle. "Random Acts of Fusion" features TV host and producer Ryan Seacrest. Said Jim Farley, Ford group VP of marketing, in a statement, “Combining social media, entertainment and unexpected consumer experiences will allow us to connect with audiences through every type of media, introducing Fusion’s profile larger than ever.” The campaign, like "Fiesta Movement" and "Escape Routes" before it, uses consumers as evangelists to talk about Ford vehicles to peers through social-media platforms. The new effort for the 2013 Fusion also uses radio and broadcast media. Central to the plan is that Ford will use a fleet of around 100 of the new Fusions for short-term loans to 1,000 or so people chosen for their personal stories. And unlike the earlier social-media driven efforts for Fiesta and Escape, Ford is aiming to give a much broader range of people -- not just influencers -- an early taste of the new Fusion, per Crystal Worthem, manager of Ford brand content and alliances. The company on Tuesday launched a video on its Facebook page featuring Seacrest, who explains that after 1,000 people sign on to watch the video, the program moves to the next level, where the nuts and bolts of the campaign are revealed. Says Worthem, “Consumers will have to work together to unlock the story, and as the program evolves, will have a chance to see for themselves how Fusion is able to transform the lives of the people who drive it.” The company says the effort will star “personalities from consumers to celebrities as the program crisscrosses the country introducing the all-new Fusion to millions.” Worthem tells Marketing Daily that Seacrest was the perfect choice for the program. "We have had a relationship with him by way of ‘American Idol’ for the past couple of years. So he has been working with us and delivering the Ford message for a while." She adds that his core fan base and those Ford is trying to reach with the Fusion campaign are aligned. Ford will do more with Seacrest as he has gone from host to producer to owning a cable production company. "The opportunities to work with him are endless," says Worthem, adding that Ford will do a lot of product placement and integration of the Fusion in TV shows and movies, as the car is visually striking, and much different the previous, second-generation Fusion.
Connecting the Internet with television viewing through mobile devices, the discovery media company Shazam will provide NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, with a social TV experience during the 2012 London Olympics. On NBCUniversal properties -- NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, Bravo and CNBC -- U.S. viewers can use the Shazam app on their mobile device to view polls and share on Twitter and Facebook, unlock unique content about athletes, and gain up-to-the-minute information on results and medal counts. Millions are expected to watch coverage this summer. The deal comes at a time when broadcasters and social media are more comfortable collaborating. In the United States, 88% of tablet owners and 86% of smartphone owners use their device while watching TV in a 30-day period, according to Nielsen. Shazam's goal to expand 30- and 60-second spots into a three-minute video or experience on Twitter and Facebook will likely tie brand sponsorships into the agreement. It's not clear whether the network will use the partnership to run 15-second tune-in spots. It is clear, however, that viewers can tap the Shazam app in front of the TV and in two seconds be transported to another experience across the Internet. "We see the strategy as taking a 30-second TV spot and turning it into three minutes or more of engagement on the Web," said Evan Krauss, EVP of advertising at Shazam. Nabisco launched a social media campaign on TV for Wheat Thins late last week using Shazam to spread the word on Twitter and Facebook. Through Shazam's technology, the audio in the television ad identifies the sound and links to a pre-written Twitter post. Those who tweet the post get a free sample of the product. Krauss said between 60% and 90% of consumers who initially engage with a Shazam ad take further action, such as tweeting a post or watching a video. Many consumers come back to the platform to explore the brand's advertisement up to three days later. Consumer packaged-goods companies tend to do well with coupons. Movie studios do well with trailers, times and ticket purchases. The "Men In Black 3" TV trailer built on Fandango gave consumers movie times in relation to their location, and allowed them to purchase the tickets. More than 80% of the time, consumers will spend more time with the trailer on the second screen. Backend analytics give advertisers aggregate numbers of people who "Touch to Shazam" on a smartphone or iPad. Advertisers also have access to reports that monitor each second. Krauss said "overlaying these numbers on top of TV schedules gives brands insight into markets, programs and commercial pods that drive engagement in spots."
Men’s aftershave brand Brut is launching a campaign that, like 2010's Brut Slap and last year's Brut News Network (BNN), offers a new spin on machismo. The TV and digital campaign, via Oradell, N.J.-based Sigma Group, is -- like the previous offbeat humorous campaigns -- focused on young guys with a digital media orientation. The campaign for the division of Helen of Troy, Ltd.'s Idelle Labs does, however, include two 15–second spots showcasing how Brut embodies “The Essence of Man.” The ads point to how society makes guys conceal their atavism -- but how, by wearing Brut they can bring out their inner "he man." One of the ads has a guy being harangued by his wife (or girlfriend) to hurry up because they’ll be late. The instant he applies Brut, she runs back into the bathroom, suddenly very pregnant. As is the goldfish, and the beagle. The media buy includes male-targeted networks in the U.S. and Canada such as Discovery, History and Spike. Online banner ads are featured on similar male-focused Web sites including Playboy.com, BleacherReport.com, BreakMedia.com, CollegeHumor.com and OfficialManCard.com. Each ad reinforces the central idea of Brut as an enhancement to maleness. Additional consumer engagement elements include a season-long partnership with Minor League Baseball and an August sponsorship of the New York-area Warrior Dash, an 5K obstacle course event through harsh terrain. The MiLB partnership was brokered by Norwalk, Conn.-based Octagon Marketing. The company says the purpose of the sponsorship is to engage fathers and kids with in-stadium activation elements such as the “Brut Handslap,” challenging men to compete in a creative handshake challenge. Last year’s BNN on Facebook.com/Brut was a hosted news format with original video and “news” that was part sports, part humor. The company has aimed at younger males for its efforts with a heavy push on social media and interactive platforms like 2010’s “slapification” app on BrutSlap.com.
According to a new report from Resolution Media and Kenshoo, “Exposure Rate,” a new metric to measure targeted engagement on Facebook, takes center stage. The research focuses on interaction with Facebook Marketplace Ads (not to be confused with the Facebook Premium Ads offering) across various ad types and targeting criteria. Based on a year-long study that analyzed global data spanning 65 billion Facebook ad impressions and 20 million Facebook ad clicks, the findings represent a wide range of brands and categories including entertainment, finance, retail, and insurance, among others. Since social media and, particularly, social network advertising, are relatively new phenomena, there are no hard-and-fast methods to guarantee success. The research covered in this paper focuses on interaction with Facebook Marketplace Ads, and the complete report includes data supporting:
SocialVibe hired John Capano as chief marketing officer, Brett Lofgren as chief revenue officer and Bob Lonigro as vice president of sales.
From a public relations point of view, the ascendance of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg to its board of directors may say more about the company in the breach than in the appointment. To wit: How could a company in A.D. 2012, whose primary customer is female, heretofore be one of only 11% of Fortune 500 companies without a woman on the board? The California State Teachers’ Retirement System asked Facebook in February to add a woman to its board, reports the Los Angeles Times’Jessica Guynn, and the advocacy group Face It has had a petition urging Facebook to include women and minorities. Women’s rights group Ultraviolet also has had a petition going. Anupam Palit, head of research at GreenCrest Capital, applauds the appointment of Sandberg but tells Guynn there is a “bigger issue” with Facebook. “The company has been criticized for not having women and minorities in leadership positions. It seems that their answer to everything is always Sheryl Sandberg,” says Palit, who adds that the company seems to react to criticism rather than getting out in front of an issue before the media sets its sights on it. Sandberg joined Facebook in March 2008 after having served as vp of global online sales & operations at Google from November 2001 to March 2008, according to her bio at Bloomberg Businessweek. Before that she was chief of staff at the Treasury Department, a management consultant with McKinsey and an economist for The World Bank. She currently sits on the board of Walt Disney Co. “Sandberg has visibly earned the position during her tenure, building and running the social network’s business operations, which include ‘sales, marketing, business development, human resources, public policy and communications’ as Facebook has grown to be worth billions,” postsTechCrunch’s Eric Eldon. “She’s also become a top advocate for female leadership in the workplace, writing and speaking on the topic for years -- particularly on how she has managed such a high-profile job while having a family.” As one commenter to Eldon’s story puts it: “I'd be impressed finding out that she can even manage to sleep sometimes.” “Sheryl has been my partner in running Facebook and has been central to our growth and success over the years,” says founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a statement. “Her understanding of our mission and long-term opportunity, and her experience both at Facebook and on public company boards make her a natural fit for our board.” The Wall Street Journal’s Shayndi Raice and Joann S. Lublin write that the appointment “is likely to have the effect of keeping Ms. Sandberg — who is worth $1.4 billion from her 44 million shares of Facebook restricted shares and options -- deeply vested in the social network.” Recruiters tell them that she has been “wooed for CEO” positions in the tech and media worlds, including that of the New York Times. Other Facebook board members are Washington Post CEO Donald Graham,; venture capitalist Marc Andreessen; Accel Partners general partner Jim Breyer; Clarium Capital founder Peter Thiel; Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and Erskine Bowles, president emeritus of the University of North Carolina. “When the New Yorker’s Ken Auletta asked Zuckerberg why there were no women on his company’s board of directors, he replied, ‘I’m going to find people who are helpful, and I don’t particularly care what gender they are or what company they are,’” Bianca Bosker pointed out in a “Women In Tech” blog on Huffington Post earlier this year. “I’m not filling the board with check boxes. Others would say that it’s Mark’s sandbox, and he controls the bucket and shovel, too. Everyone else is there for companionship. While Zuckerberg outright owns about 28% of Facebook, he controls 57% of all shareholder votes due to its two-class stock structure. “To put it simply, he can do whatever he wants with Facebook, and you, the shareholder, don't have a say -- not even if you team up with every other outside shareholder in the company,” Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik pointed out in May. When all is said and done, though, no one seems to dispute Zuckerberg did something very right yesterday.
Remember Highlight? Sure, it’s still around, and it’s premature to write it off. Yet the new app that received the most buzz at South by Southwest (SXSW) this year just gained a new competitor: Facebook. There have been many instances recently of the rich getting richer, with the best functionality and features getting incorporated into the most dominant platforms. Facebook, Google, Apple, and Twitter are among those especially adept at making dreams come true while simultaneously unleashing nightmares. Here are four ways this has been happening lately: 1) Proximity Networks Tracx reported that Highlight, Glancee, and Sonar respectively received the most buzz at SXSW in March. All three offer twists on a similar theme: find friends near you, and potentially your friends’ friends as well. To most people, the idea of constantly sharing one’s location to strangers sounds creepy, so it doesn’t have mainstream potential in its current form. That’s presumably why Foursquare, which was all about finding friends before it relaunched to focus on discovering local businesses, has been cautious here. Meanwhile, Apple’s Find My Friends mobile service is entirely focused on locating select people, and generally only for brief intervals. It’s Facebook that will now likely determine to what extent any of this catches on. Not only did Facebook acquire Glancee, but it is testing out a feature dubbed Find Friends Nearby (initially codenamed Friendshake) that emerged from a hackathon. There are bugs; tech legend Robert Scoble commented on TechCrunch how it didn’t live up to what Highlight did so well. But this is version 0.1 of a feature that Facebook barely publicized. Version 0.1 of a feature from Facebook with its nearly 1 billion users is a heck of a lot more meaningful than version 10.0 of a service that reaches 10,000 or even 1 million users. 2) Facial Recognition As discussed in this series last week, Facebook recently acquired Face.com. Days later, I received an email from Google+ with the subject line, “Is this you in Daniel Berkowitz’s album?” Daniel’s my father. He uploaded a number of photos, and didn’t tag anyone. But Google recognized me because I enabled a feature called Find My Face. Google’s documentation notes, “After you turn on Find my Face, Google+ uses the photos you're tagged in to create a model of your face. The model updates as tags of you are added or removed, and you can delete the entire face model at any time by turning off Find my Face.” Few people probably know this setting even exists, so it won’t have much of an immediate impact, and many will prefer it stays off. Heck, the Daily Mail reported that Google’s executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, said the company “was ‘unlikely’ to employ facial recognition programs.” Yet vain as I am, I love the idea that Google can find photos of me. I then have the option of tagging myself. Really, who wouldn’t want to know what photos of them are online? This hints at what Facebook can do with Face.com, following Google acquiring related technology PittPatt last year to create its own offering. I’ve used facial recognition software for years, and nothing prepared me for receiving that email from Google. As a bonus, it found seven photos, and all of them were of me. It’s all the more impressive given that in many photos, it’s hard to tell me apart from my oldest brother. How long will it be before facial recognition software can tell the difference between identical twins? We can’t be that far off. 3) Check-Ins Checking in has proven to be a fad, for the most part. Even Foursquare minimized the prominence of the check-in feature in the latest version of its app. Yet location-sharing remains all the more important, especially when considering how common it is now for people to append their location to posts in Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other services. Now Apple may be dabbling with check-ins. Bloomberg reported that Apple will incorporate Yelp’s check-in functionality within its new mobile mapping software coming this fall. Yelp was always an also-ran with check-ins, and most other check-in-themed services have long since died through acquisition or disinterest. It’s questionable how core Yelp check-ins will be for Apple’s maps, but once the upgrade is live, Foursquare could be further marginalized. 4) Curation There once was an amazing service called Summify that aggregated the links shared by anyone you followed on Twitter and then delivered them as email digests. Then Twitter acquired it, and Summify started winding down operations. That made room for other services, such as News.me -- one not quite as good, but an acceptable alternative. Then Twitter came out with its daily email digest, which also isn’t as great a product as what Summify offered, but it’s very good and will likely obviate the need for any others. Summify and then News.me made Twitter far more useful for me. It turns out Twitter’s now doing that on its own thanks to its new addition. The Sun Glancee, Face.com, Yelp, and Summify all won by creating products that have the potential to become core parts of major companies’ value propositions. Yet that’s a dangerous game, like Icarus playing chicken with the sun. Facebook probably didn’t even need Glancee, as its rival prototype came out of a hackathon. Apple will hurt a slew of local services by focusing on Yelp. Yet as a character once noted on “30 Rock,” “When a big one falls, four little ones move up.” Google and Facebook may inspire others like Microsoft and Apple to invest more in facial recognition. Or others may look for the next generation, whether it’s voice recognition, retina scanning, or DNA-based friend finding. Even when a few get burned, plenty others still want their shot at getting close to the sun. A few will even overpower it.
By lunchtime, I had cried twice already. Admittedly, I’m an easy cry -- but for heaven’s sake, I was at social media conference, not a funeral. Later that afternoon, @hatcherdogg revealed that he too was moved, tweeting: “Why the hell am I crying again at #140conf12.” Although Jeff Pulver, the mensch behind the 140 Characters Conference, “wears things that nobody wears” (like Kermit the Frog sneakers), he does not "talk about things that nobody cares" about. In fact, in just one day at the event, I gleaned at least six observations worth sharing (and caring about). 1. Social media is a boundless force of social good Pulver set the tone up front, insisting: “You don't need a license to do good, you just have to do it, and if you are clueless like me, you don't have any boundaries.” To prove that point, one speaker recalled how a tweet from Jeff to the U.S. Air Force just after the Haiti earthquake smoothed the way for Ann Curry's rescue team to land. 2. Social media is best taught by doing Professor Rotolo, an inspired instructor of social media at Syracuse University, had many of us wondering “why weren't there teachers like him when we were in college?” Challenged to create a video that would go viral, one of his students, Hailey Temple, actually succeeded by tapping into the "Call Me Maybe" parody bonanza (click here to see it). 3. Twitter provides access to the otherwise inaccessible Another one of Rotolo's students, Isaac Budmen, created the first Twitter drinking game named -- drumroll, please -- #DrinkUp while at school. After the game became a global hit, Budmen sought the advice of his hero Dennis Crowley, but couldn't reach the Foursquare founder by phone or email. A few tweets later, he was having drinks with Crowley, who encouraged him to "build on." 4. Sorry, bachelors - the proposition bar just got a lot higher Halfway through "Isaac's Live Lip Dub Proposal" it's clear that this Isaac, whose marriage proposal on May 23, 2012 resembled a full-on Broadway production, has wrecked it for just about every bachelor to come. If you are not among the 14 million who have already witnessed this smorgasbord of sweetness then by all means do so now -- and if you're single, you'll want to recruit a choreographer friend like Gina Morris, the girl in the red dress in the video and Isaac's lip dub planning partner. 5. Bet on Twitter to survive and evolve While Twitter is likely to remain dwarfed by Facebook, the passion of its user base ensures a bright future, especially as techies like Jack Hidary look to expand its functionality. Hidary offered glimpses of things to come like TML (Twitter Markup Language), which could enable machines to learn from tweets, provide smarter crowdsourced information and introduce what I'd call “twe-commerce.” 6. From tragedy comes inspiration As I mentioned earlier, it was an emotional day. Heather Hamilton told the tragic story of her son, Zack, and how she fulfilled a promise in his memory with Zack’s Dream Room. Funded in large part through social media outreach, Hamilton also engaged via social channels with the Sesame Street team, who ultimately produced “Zacky’s Song,” a lovely tribute featuring Elmo, Zack’s hero. Final Note This conference was as rich with notable content as this article is brief, and as such, I hardly do it justice here. For more observations, including more of the stories that moved me to tears, visit http://thedrewblog.com. Finally, to Mr. Pulver and with apologies to Aerosmith: You’re tweetin’ my name, but I gotta make clear, I can say, Jeffrey, where I’ll be in a year.