Month: October 2018

_____________________

Did you know, if you SUBSCRIBE to the Five things on Friday newsletter, you are 100% guaranteed to get MORE STUFF (eg: a proper intro and probably some more gifs) than reading it here on whatleydude.com.

So y’know, SUBSCRIBE TODAY.

TO THE THINGS!
_____________________

1. ANOTHER WEEK, ANOTHER ‘AND WHAT A WEEK IT HAS BEEN FOR FACEBOOK’ SECTION

Sometimes, when it’s a slow news week, the press – especially in this country – might pick a ‘villain of the week’.

One week it might be beneficiaries of entirely legal corporation tax avoidance or the next it might the dangers of kids obsessed with gaming (it’s Fortnite currently,  Pokemon Go before, expect that to change at some point), or social networks and THE DANGERS OF SCREENTIME.

It is what it is. 

Facebook, whether you agree with it or not, right now can’t seem to catch a break. I only made passing comment to its new spy-device/home-video-calling system, PORTAL last week (and it was only in an email reply conversation did I realised I’d not unpacked my thoughts on it – I’ll come back to it, thanks Dev) but it was not received all that well at all. 

This week we had (first): 

‘Instagram Has a Massive Harassment Problem‘ 

An essential long read that really lays out just how effing awful it is for some people on the Instagram platform. 

Worse yet, people working there are quoted as saying: 

“There’s an effort called ‘kindness,’ which is to reduce bullying and harassment, but there’s not that many people working on it,” said Alex, a current Instagram employee who asked to be referred to by a gender-neutral pseudonym. “Generally, what you’ll find is a lot of these efforts on harassment or bullying, or there’s a new feature to track how much time you spend—they’re mostly done for PR.” Another Instagram employee told me nearly the same thing: that Instagram’s anti-bullying rhetoric “doesn’t seem connected to what’s actually going on in the company.”

I am reminded of the Listerine debacle all over again (thing three, here). 

Anyway, after that Instagram thing we have the ongoing saga of the exposed accounts issue (first they thought it was 50m, to be sure they revoked 90m security tokens, but now it turns out it was ‘just’ 30m). That’s worth reading up on. 

As a side point, it’s a bit horse has bolted but this week I went back through my Facebook account and just started deleting profile information (aka the stuff that has been exposed) and reconsidered what I want to keep on the platform. From a personal perspective, I only use the Facebook platform for two groups that I’m part of. And even that interaction is through the browser (not even the recent 3D photo update could pull me back). 

And then to top it all off, in the middle of this past week, the Wall Street Journal reported on a lawsuit that has been filed claiming Facebook knew about its over-reporting of video metrics for a year before it acted on it. NOT A GOOD LOOK.

Really. 
 
So yeah, it’s been a rough week for Facebook indeed. 

OH WAIT, THIS JUST IN: as we go to press (er, who’s ‘we’?), former leader of the UK political party, the Liberal Democrats (the US pundits will have fun with that), Nick Clegg, has been hired to lead Facebook’s global affairs and communications team.

Can’t think why… 

Ha. This piece from the FT (that the above is from) probably says more about the appointment than anything you’ll read on Twitter today (h/t Kate Bevan). 

So yeah, there’s your Facebook news for the week. FOR THE WEEK. Cray cray.

Finally, regarding PORTAL, Facebook initially said it had ‘no plans at this time’ to serve ads on PORTAL. But what you use it for, though? That’s another story. 

PS. Clegg has just published this to The Guardian. I’m about to read it, you should too. 

_____________________

2. Y&R

Burn, baby burn.

You hear stories and then you hear stories. All of this is entirely believable and, well, entirely on par for the advertising world of old (that I’ve oft-heard about and ne’er encountered). 

_____________________

3. A FEW THINGS REGARDING RED DEAD REDEMPTION II

HEY YOU, NON-GAMER, DON’T SKIP THIS SECTION QUITE YET. 

First off, in the same way that Marvel’s Spider-Man (for PS4) trailers and posters were literally EVERYWHERE a few weeks ago, expect the same from the incoming western ‘sim’ RED DEAD REDEMPTION II. 

Things to know about this game: 

1. It’s expected to be MASSIVE. 
2. It’s out on October 26th. 
3. I’m almost intimidated by how massive it is. 
4. I know SEVERAL lapsed gamers that are specifically coming back for this game (you know who you are).

Bear in mind the original came out May 2010 on last gen machines (PS3 and Xbox 360), that’s a huge statement. More so that we’re headed towards the end of the life cycles of the machines they’re launching on – the fact that one new release can drive hardware sales is testament to how big a game this is and just how much, if you’ll pardon the pun, is riding on it. 

5. Enjoyed S1 of Westworld? Imagine that but without the crazy robots. 
6. Here’s a ridiculous gameplay trailer. 
7. Don’t try and talk to me after Oct 26th. 

_____________________

4. BYE BYE GOOGLE+

If you haven’t read this massive thread on how bad everything was over there back when G+ was a thing, you should.

Neither Google or the author come off that well IMO.

But still. Silicon Valley is mental.  

_____________________

5. SMART DOORBELLS REDUCE CRIME BY UP TO 55%

Or do they?

_____________________

THE ESSENTIALS: 
 

1. Five rules for the workplace 
2. The Indian Government (again – but with impact)
3. Hope and Despair

_____________________

THE BONUS LINK SECTION OF BONUS BONUS LINKS

Right you animals, let’s get these bonuses IN AND ON. 

1. ‘I pulled a 1,500-year-old sword out of a lake‘ 
2. Crazy Random Re-Opened London Street? Amazing.
3. My jury is still well and truly out on the Pixel 3 but this piece on exactly how they’ve computationally attacked the zoom function is PEAK NERDERY of the highest order. 
4. A great thread of ‘facts’ (not all are true) about Freddie Mercury
5. Pots. Kettles. Scamtastic.
6. AMAZING PERCEPTUAL ILLUSIONS
7. Yes.
8. I’m speaking at a thing in Bristol next month. Are you in that part of the world? Come.
9. ESCAPE FROM FANTASY (this has been everywhere but still, if you haven’t read it – read it)
10. #COPYSAFARI. I mentioned Dr Draper in the intro. One of the many things he’s been up to in his trip here (and probably my favourite thing) was this ‘Copy Safari’ with Vikki Ross. Worth a read of this great hashtag.
11. DOES YOUR STRATEGY EVEN LIFT BRO?  – compelling.
12. I just can’t get enough.
13. Man? Read this.

_____________________

PS. Don’t forget to subscribe for MORE.

_____________________

Did you know, if you SUBSCRIBE to the Five things on Friday newsletter, you are 100% guaranteed to get MORE STUFF (eg: a proper intro and probably some more gifs) than reading it here on whatleydude.com.

So y’know, SUBSCRIBE TODAY.

TO THE THINGS!
_____________________

1. SNAP ORIGINALS

Did you catch this announcement last week?

‘With Snap Originals, Snapchat turns to TV-like show programming‘

“Two years after Snapchat premiered its first original show, original programming has taken on new importance for the app, which has struggled to grow its daily audience. Snapchat is formalizing its original programming push through the formation of the Snap Originals brand.

Snap Originals will encompass Snapchat’s existing original shows, like political news series “Good Luck America,” as well as a new slate of scripted and documentary series that will begin to premiere on Snapchat on Oct. 10 and mark the platform’s entry into TV-like programming.” 

OK, so that’s interesting.

I read that and I think a couple of things.

Snap created Snapchat Stories. It was a huge success. Facebook lifts the feature wholesale first into Instagram, then into everything else – and makes it bigger. 

Facebook launches IGTV. It doesn’t seem to be a huge success. Snapchat copies it. And… makes it smaller? I don’t know. I remain unconvinced on long-form portrait content. But then again, from the same article:

“At the same time as Snapchat has seen its daily audience shrink — losing 3 million daily users in the second quarter of 2018 — its made-for-Snapchat shows have sustained regular viewerships. Half of the audience for two of Snapchat’s existing shows — NBC’s news show “Stay Tuned” and ESPN’s “SportsCenter” — tune in at least three times a week, said Sean Mills, head of original content at Snapchat’s parent company, Snap. Now Snapchat is looking to give people more reasons to check Snapchat more often by premiering episodic series that are designed to be watched on a recurring basis.”

Ignoring the DAU number drop (!!!), the episodic retention numbers aren’t bad at all.

And with a view to start selling six second unskippable ads against that content (also mentioned in the article), you can see how this might work for Snap. Might.

Is it something I’m going to be recommending to clients? Probably not. But then again I’m equally as bullish about IGTV’s lack of impact. Portrait long-form? Not a thing. I’ll gladly admit to being wrong when it is. But right now? There are better uses for your advertising dollar. 

Also: Ouch.

_____________________

2. GLASS. GLASS. GLASS. 

There’s a new trailer and it looks ace and I want to see it right now please thank you very much. 

I’m going to guess that you’ve already seen UNBREAKABLE (if you haven’t, fix that). The one that people missed, and criminally underrated, is another film called SPLIT. James McAvoy is (and IS AMAZING) in it and it’s worth a watch. GLASS is a little bit of a spoiler for the end of the movie but still, watch SPLIT…

And then get excited about GLASS.  

_____________________

3. READ THIS 

This, from HuffPost’s ‘Highline’, is a provocative look at the attitudinal and societal structures in place that go out of their way to deny support to the obesity epidemic. 

Read it and rethink.

Also: the photography is fantastic.

_____________________

4. FIVE TRENDS IN LEADING EDGE COMMUNICATIONS

Back in July, a rather lovely man named Iain Bundred (a recent FTOF subscriber and avid reader) asked me if I would like to contribute to the next joint WPP + Government Communications Services (GCS) digital communications report. 

TL;DR – I said yes, and we published this week. Hurrah!



You can find the full report over on the GCS.GOV website and, having written one chapter (voice) and helped build out another (ethics), as well as occasionally advise on the thing as a whole, I am immensely proud of it. Go see. 

If you’ve never heard of GCS, it’s basically a professional body that is set up to support any and all people working in communications roles across UK government. These kinds of documents are put together to both offer a level-setter on what is happening now and what is to come in the future – and of course, how you might prepare for that. 

Iain and I travelled up to Birmingham last week to help launch the document at the Public Sector Communications Academy. It was a big deal! And pretty awesome to be there and present my trend in person. 

One of the things I really love about my job is the whole responding to a client brief, thing. It’s the main thrust of what I do. It requires research, noodling, and fundamentally, a lot of writing. And I love writing. Writing something like this, something that could have broad-reaching practical application in governmental departments across the country reminds me of why I love what I do. So yeah. I did that and I like it. 

Next up: #OgilvyTrends2019! 

PS. Last week I shared some words about esports that I’d written (but didn’t get used). There were a few other bits in the pipeline that may or may not have been used too. I followed up on them and two will be landing before the end of year (so I’m told). So expect those at some point. This, the section above, is the one I mentioned that was definitely coming. So for those of you keeping track, you can tick that one off now 😉 

_____________________

5. THE BATTLE FOR THE HOME

I’m doing a ton of reading and research around Voice at the moment. Home assistants and their ilk will feature in some way or form come the next Ogilvy Trends doc (see #OgilvyTrends2019 for progress – right now, it’s just all drafts).

This piece ‘The Battle for the Home‘ is a great primer of the scene as it is today, including all the most recent announcements (including Facebook’s laughable Portal offering). 

Want to get up to speed? This is the article to read. 

_____________________

THE ESSENTIALS: 

1. Bollywood
2. The Indian Government
3. Hey you know what, just India generally

_____________________

HE BONUS LINK SECTION OF BONUS BONUS LINKS

B O N U S – B ON U S – B O N U S
…

1. I really like this Tube ad from 1928
2. Into Advertising? Looking for a book to read? BBH’s World Cup of Ad Books is a decent place to start. A bit heavy on the male side but still a good batch to be found.
3. Instagram’s guide for keeping your children safe on its platform (what?).
4. Did you catch YouTube announcing vertical video ad units? I nearly missed it.
5. I’m assuming after last week’s edition you’ve all binged KILLING EVE by now? Good. You’ll be pleased to know that the BBC has acquired the rights for Season 2. Hurrah.
6. Karen Blackett, UK country manager for WPP, appointed as Race Equality Business Champion is brilliant (also: my friend’s cousin, randomly).

_____________________

Until next time.

_____________________

Did you know, if you SUBSCRIBE to the Five things on Friday newsletter, you are 100% guaranteed to get MORE STUFF (eg: a proper intro and probably some more gifs) than reading it here on whatleydude.com.

So y’know, SUBSCRIBE TODAY.

TO THE THINGS!
_____________________

1. ALEXA-ENABLED HOMES

Here’s a thing: about ten days ago, it was announced that Amazon – specifically Amazon’s Alexa Fund – had invested in a Californian home design and prefab housing company, Plant Prefab.

THIS IS REALLY INTERESTING (h/t Caroline). 

I’ve long held the belief that home assistants won’t truly be ‘here’ until they come embedded in the home. Literally. Smart speakers are great – as are the myriad of products and services they plug in to – but until all those different touchpoints are completely in sync, eg: baked into the very walls of your home, then ultimately you’re just buying tech after tech after tech in the hope that it will eventually marry all together on its own. 

Amazon making this kind of move (and I fully expect Google to start looking at something similar in the near future; (see Google Fiber for early attempts in a similar space)) marks a move that is probably well overdue but completely in-line the the Bezos strategy for consumerism in the future. Alexa everywhere. Plugged into your door, your fridge, your home, and even your damn microwave*.

Most tech takes, on average 20-30yrs before it becomes completely embedded in the modern world. Smart-homes are no different. If anything, it may well be longer – given the size of the purchase. One thing is for certain, your children’s children will be buying these. I just hope they manage to avoid the nightmare as visualised from the opener of Season 2 of Mr Robot (4mins 24seconds – this is brilliant).

As I said, it’s really interesting and very much a sign of things to come. 

—-

*Did you see the Alexa Microwave? It’s actually a thing. I may have linked to it a week or so ago. And somthing has been bugging me about it since:  I don’t get it. I still don’t get it. It’s been a few weeks since they announced it and I’ve been thinking about Voice a lot of late and I STILL DON’T GET IT. Obvious accessibility benefits aside, IF YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE MICROWAVE TO PUT THE FOOD IN, YOU MAY AS WELL PUSH THE BUTTON ONCE/TWICE WHICH IS INFINITELY FASTER THAN SAYING ‘ALEXA, PLEASE TURN ON THE MICROWAVE FOR 3MINS’. I don’t get it. That is all. BLERGH. 

_____________________

2. NEW HELLBOY MOVIE? YES PLEASE. 

I’m just here for the poster. 

‘LEGENDARY AF’

Amazing. 
_____________________

3. I AM LATE TO THE KILLING EVE PARTY BUT I DON’T CARE

You’re one of three people reading this.

1. ‘James, where the HELL have you BEEN? Killing Eve has been out for AGES and I can’t believe you’ve taken SO LONG to get involved! Welcome! Isn’t it FANTASTIC?’

or

2. ‘UGH. JAMES! Another person telling me to watch this show! It’s on ‘the list’, OK? I just haven’t got around to watching it yet and hey, you know what, on your insistence, maybe I’ll start it tonight.’

or

3. ‘Er, WTF is Killing Eve?’

People 1. I know, I know. I should’ve gotten to it earlier.

People 2. DO IT. 

People 3. Read on! 

I’m a huge Pheobe Waller-Bridge fan ever since I saw her in SIXTY-SIX BOOKS way back in 2011. I then saw her again in 2013 when FLEABAG was a one-woman show at the Edinburgh Fringe (show 18 in that list). AND THEN AGAIN when FLEABAG become a killer BBC comedy (not seen that either? watch it). PWB wrote KILLING EVE and it shows. It is phenomenally good. Psychopath killer kills people. MI5 agent spots a pattern. Cat and mouse – AND BLACKEST BLACK OF ALL BLACK HUMOUR – ensues. 

Watch it with your eyes. 

_____________________

4. SOME UNPUBLISHED WRITING, PART ONE (OF MAYBE TWO BUT DEFINITELY NOT THREE)

Over the past couple of months, I’ve written responses to three separate writing/commentary briefs. One is definitely being published (next week, and I’ll yell about it here), two is currently in the ether (it might get used, it might not), and three… well about 10% of the Q&A got used.

I liked that other 90%, so I thought I’d reproduce the whole thing here because why not. 

The topic: Esports + Brands

Why is gaming set to be the new vanguard of sports sponsorship and brand experience?
There are two main drivers. First, and most obviously, there’s the explosion of eSports as a multi-million-dollar industry – globally. With an audience of over 300m players/viewers worldwide, and projected revenue for 2018 expected to hit close to a billion dollars – it is inarguable that eSports has arrived.
The second and probably the most important part of the equation is that game developers are now opening themselves to brand partnerships. It’s been a long time coming, first with in-game advertising in racing games for example, and now – with the advent of micro-transactions – in-game purchases are another way for companies to get their brands in front of the avid gamers of today.
 
What benefits are there of combining the gaming sector with live events / as well as virtual event experiences?
For the gaming sector, live events, virtual or otherwise, are its lifeblood. League of Legends tournaments sell out STADIUMS of attendees. With an online audience that grows well above seven figures, if gamers are a brand’s target, then looking to see how to get involved with these kinds of events would be an obvious choice.
 
How about in-game advertising and influencer marketing, what does this bring to brand experiences?
From an influence standpoint, professional players are where you can make an impact. Broadcasting their gameplay via Twitch or YouTube Gaming (and soon – Facebook), these ‘streamers’ have an attentive avid audience and fanbase stretching into the hundreds of thousands. If you can make the partnership fit – and by that I mean not come across as a clunky, ham-fisted money spunk, then the dividends you reap could be well worth the investment. From an in-game advertising perspective, I’d probably look past that and see if there was any way to brand any in-game items that could be unlocked or purchased using microtransactions. That could be something like Rockstar Energy drinks giving away free in-game items with every ring pull for Destiny 2 or even Mercedes popping up as an unlockable vehicle in Mario Kart.
 
Is football the obvious sport at the moment and why and what other sports could seize this gaming opportunity?
As a huge gamer myself, I have to say Football is far too obvious – and easy. I’d look further. The traditional ‘sports’ that we all know – they exist for gamers, yes. But DOTA, SFII, Super Smash Bros., Fortnite, League of Legends, PUBG… these are the games that people tune in to watch. Not FIFA.


—-

Tune in next week for more: STUFF THAT DIDN’T GET USED. 
(apart from the first one, that definitely is, and it’s a huge deal, and I’m super excited – you know which one, Iain)

_____________________

5. #ASKTWICE

Mental Health Awareness week for the UK was back in May. For the US, it starts tomorrow. I feel now as I felt back then. And if you need to talk, you can hit reply to this email or DM me on Twitter. I’ve had my fair share of ups and downs – (long-time readers will know). 

If you’re one of the 3-in-4 people that won’t suffer problems with your mental health then maybe this new ad from Time to Change is for you.

If a mate says they’re fine and you think they might not be, ask twice. 

(full disclosure: I didn’t work on it but it IS from Ogilvy London (and I really like it)) 

_____________________

THE ESSENTIALS: 

1. Oh dear, Topshop.
2. Iceland’s lessons for all.
3. #MeToo across the EU.
4. Nobel.
5. And still Brett Kavanaugh rolls on.
6. This chart though.
7. What do you do on a daily basis? 

_____________________

THE BONUS LINK SECTION OF BONUS BONUS LINKS

I HEARD YOU LIKED BONUSES SO I PUT BONUSES IN YOUR BONUSES SO YOU CAN BONUS WHILE YOU BONUS
…

1. The Unilad/Ladbible thing is as grim as it is hilarious. There is a lot to unpack here. The dark motives of a leading competitor? The fact that you can be so massive and not make a profit? The general attempt to convince folk that what these publications create is anywhere near original?
2. Brandwatch bought Crimson Hexagon. This is huge and firmly cements Brandwatch as THE market leader when it comes to all things social/market intelligence. I was the Brandwatch NYK event earlier this week  (it was great). If you get the chance to go next year, do so. 
3. More Christine and the Queens.
4. ‘Thunderstorm’ never saw the light of day. After the popularity of this reveal, I think that will change in the near future. 
5. This is a tiny little thing but I love this Twitter execution from Xbox. Just a really neat way to bring to life a super active month of gaming in one easy video. Looks great in feed too. 
6. On a related front, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is out this week and I’m not getting it until January (I’ve got Destiny to finish and Red Dead is out in a fortnight PLUS the AC price will drop in January). That said, it is reviewing INCREDIBLY well – and look, giant wangs!
7. SNAKE RESCUE!
8. Best speaker swag.
9. The case for chaos.

_____________________

Until next time.