May 8, 2006ViTrue or False
Filed Under: Consumer Generated Content
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Enter ViTrue, a company that has just acquired online video sharing site, Sharkle, and about to drive a couple more tails into the coffin of the traditional ad agency.
Their proposition? Innocuous enough: (from their website)
- ViTrue connects Brands with Consumers through our Video Infrastructure Tools and User Generated Content.
- ViTrue enables Brands and Consumers to engage in meaningful interactions through our world-class technology solutions.
- ViTrue defines the next generation of Brand and Consumer interaction from over 20 years of combined industry experience from our management team.
Minus 1 point for both MediaPost and ViTrue referring to USER generated content
Minus 1 point for the lame name...ViTrue?
Minus 1 point for the lame website...www.vitrue.com?
Now for the pluses...
+3 for already having one advertiser under their belts....Sony Pictures for "The Benchwarmers"
+2 for having acquired Sharkle (not exactly YouTube but in the game nonetheless)
So according to my ridiculous math, that's +2 for anyone keeping count.
But what's really happening here? ViTrue claims to be offering a formalized and scaled solution - that ala Current TV with the VC-squared - allows marketers to "control" (slippery slope) in terms of briefing, approving etc creative into and out of the system. In many respects, it's another AdCandy, except perhaps this time their timing is a lot better and I believe the business model is a little less "gimicky"
If I'm being honest, I feel this stinks of opportunistic money making (return of the other VC), but maybe it's just the jealousy talking. Rupert? Oh Rupert? Your checkbook awaits.
Seriously though, I'm beyond concerned with the need to formalize an organic and natural process - in any way. My concerns for ViTrue are the same I expressed with AdCandy. Ultimately consumers will get fed up with being used and manipulated and cast their attention elsewhere.
On the flipside, any mechanism that does find a happy middle ground between frothing marketers and playful consumers (or is it the other way around?) can only be a good thing, right?
As reported by MediaPost
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Comments
Yes, you gotta give them credit for trying. Many companies are still way behind the curve on this medium. I heard a mention of YouTube on CNBC last week, where the main concern seemed to be copyright infringement, rather than the huge opportunity to create a stronger connection with consumers. Companies still have a bit of chilling out to do in this regard.
By the way, keep up the good work on your podcast--
Posted by: Monica Powers
I have a strong feeling that this revolutionary trend is about to be over used and thus exhausted. If brands will treat this as a mere trend or fad, and blindly jump on the bandwagon, people will get bored and look elsewhere rather soon. If consumer-generated-content won't be handled cleverly (that is, strategically rather than mere advertising tactic), consumers will start feeling that they are being cynically manipulated into the hand of marketeers and it can quickly backfire.
Posted by: Asi
Being that I'm a college student, I would like to interject with an account from campus. There are many students here at UC that are more than willing to create new commercials, or manipulate old ones FOR FREE, all for an opportunity to showcase their talents. The feeling that the marketeers are using them will not stifle the producer mentality that is alive in a lot of people.
I think this desire to be noticed (by brands as well as producers) will not exhaust this new medium of advertising production but instead will force it to change and grow to develop some sort of monetary, or professional reward system. But I may be a bit of an optimist.
Posted by: Michael Denton
Michael - there's no doubt that a viable component of the CGC space from a motivation standpoint is the F+F one-two punch i.e. fame and fortune.
CGC is a great way for students to get noticed/hired, as is it for established players/freelancers etc to do likewise.
Remember the infamous Lee + Dan spec commercial?
My point is that marketers need scale and they need to be able to convert the attention and contribution of consumers into paying customers...and that's where things break down.
Getting hired might work for you, but getting fired won't work for them :)
Posted by: jJ
