Jaffe Juice

Why Brands Will Focus Less On Startups In 2014

My latest MediaPost column makes the case that startups are not a fad, fleeting tactic du jour or "The Next Big Thing."

Actually what I really hope is that less brands will be doing the WRONG things with startups and more brands will be doing the RIGHT kind of partnership and collaboration.

Read on and weigh in...

My friend David Berkowitz, CMO of MRY, just wrote an opinion piece titled “Why Brands will Focus Less on Startups in 2014.” In the piece, he cites (1) clutter, (2) too much P.R, and (3) lack of results as the three reasons why “brand and agency love for startups is going to fizzle.”

What David is referring to is a sickness that seems to strike many marketers and is passed on to their agencies (or perhaps it is the other way round): namely TNBTS, or The Next Big Thing Syndrome. The good news is that there is a cure. It’s called strategy. When there is none present, I strongly recommend abstinence (hence, the title of David’s article, and why I chose to take the same title although I have a divergent opinion.).

 “Clutter” represents all the noise out there; the tonnage; the quantity of startup candidates. In fact, when TechCrunch pretty much opened its entire startup database to the public, I rejoiced. 30,000+ one-liner descriptions in an Excel spreadsheet! That’s like referring to the phone book as your list of potential dates. Good luck with that! The antidote to noise is the filter, curation or vetting that helps weed “too many” and weave “too few” into “just right.”

The problem with P.R. is P.R. itself. Ever since I stumbled into the world of P.R. during my social media days, I keep coming back to “those who can, do; those who can’t, P.R.” as I wrote in an Online Spin  six+ months ago. I do recognize, however, that there is value to both internal and external merchandising. I think where David and I diverge is that he is referring to P.R. as being first to market with Vine, Snapchat or Google Glass – ALL OF WHICH are hyped up by the very P.R. and trade engine that accepts or rejects what is newsworthy on their terms.  In addition, none of these platforms are early stage; none of the collaborations are strategic; all of them benefit the trade publications and the platforms themselves (can you say acquisition or IPO?) as opposed to the brands that helped them get there in the first place!

Then there’s “results.” Certainly if a startup collaboration is being attached to quarterly earnings, then we would do well to cut off funding to them altogether and instead invest this money to determine the same “results” from “working” media – specifically, how many millions of dollars are being completely wasted and negligently justified through outdated marketing mix modeling.

I hope 2014 is not the year of the startup. It’s very simple: 2013 was the year of the startup. 2012 was the year of the startup. Every single year in which the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and kicking is the year of the startup. Startups are nothing new. They were, are and always will exist.

To cover startups so prolifically (Berkowitz notes that the word startup was mentioned in Ad Age more times in 2012 than 2005-2009 combined) and then summarily declare, “it’s over” is proof positive of TNBTS.

I hope 2014 puts an end to endless “speed dating” without any intention of a second date; hack-a-thons with an emphasis on the word “hack”;  brand accelerators that are led by agencies who implode when their one-man-band startup-guy leaves to join another agency or, more likely, a startup; and, last but least, the $5,000 pilot program, which is nothing more than a checkmark on the Next Big Thing checklist.

When the dust settles, fewer brands will be standing, and these brands will continue to enjoy unprecedented competitive advantages from profoundly partnering with startups. Brands like Under Armor, which just acquired MapMyFitness. Brands like Intuit, which acquired Mint. Brands like Avis, which acquired ZipCar. Or Brands like Mondelēz International (an Evol8tion client) that just won Mobile Marketer of the Year based in part on their Mobile Futures Program.

They all thank you for reading David’s article and taking it at face value.

As do I.

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3 Online Spin articles on Fear, Change, Inertia and ultimately Innovation

I haven't posted my Online Spin articles for a while, but I'd like to do so now with 3 related ones that all triangulate on a brand marketer's need to change, move quicker, embrace the "fear" of failure (the only thing to fear is fear itself) and ultimately, adopt a much more progressive lean-forward approach to new media, emerging technology and partnership with startups/entrepreneurs.

1. The opportunity cost of inertia - This article focuses on doing nothing. Being hamstrung with indecision or just procrastinating in general.
2. Facebook isn't failing marketers. Marketers are failing marketers - This article really isn't about Facebook at all, but rather the approach that marketers take when evaluating and ultimately executing new media or emerging media programs. With respect to the former, it's all about old school reach and therefore replication and with the latter, it's anemic lip-service due to the lack of reach. The unadulterated creativity, originality and disruptive innovation is nowhere to be found...
3. I have seen the enemy - and the enemy is within - My latest article, which goes back to the notion of "doing nothing" but this time focuses on all the wheel spinning, lost time and therefore expended resources on deciding NOT to move forward on opportunities already under consideration.

Here's the final article in its entirety:

Companies are their own worst enemies. The amount of wheel-spinning that takes place to get an initiative in place or even started, only for the rug to be ripped out underneath due to “a new CMO coming in” (or an existing one going out), “a budget cut” or “a reorg,” translates into significant hours expended, and therefore has a very real price tag.

I think it’s important we recognize the tangible cost of dragging our feet, being stuck in holding patterns and/or ultimately having cold feet as a substantial cost of doing business.

The waste of time -- and therefore money -- is mission critical, especially when dealing in a complex, dynamic and turbulent marketplace, with -- let’s face it -- extremely scarce resource (and by scarce resources, I’m talking about talent and time). While we all complain about budget cuts, in reality we are swimming in obscene excessive amounts of money that go into the temporal renting of multitasking eyeballs (yes, I’m talking about YOU, 30-second spot).

As a writer and speaker, I get to clench my fist and shake it disapprovingly at you a lot. You agree with me and yet you do nothing about it.

As a consultant and “agency” guy, I get to feel the short stick by being on the receiving end of your constant “reorgs” and additional approvals and reviews.

But honestly, don’t worry about me -- this is about you. I’m really worried about you.

Did you ever stop and think that all this time lost is actually hurting the current and future state of your business? In other words, hastening the next reorg and restructure? Your inability to get anything done that is different, original, unique and/or innovative is without question putting your own continuity and value INTO question.

Seriously, consider the ROI of not doing anything. It’s a Return on Inertia that is ironically very measurable both as an opportunity cost (past/hours) and opportunity lost (future/execution).

Instead, consider the analogy of waiting in a very long line. You’ve stood for an hour and you’re strongly considering calling it quits and walking away. Only, you’ve already spent an hour and who knows, the wait might only be another 30 minutes or so. And then before you know it, it’s 90 minutes or 2 hours. Now you DEFINITELY can’t walk away, because you’ve invested 2 hours, which is much more than the hour. And then it’s three hours -- and so on.

Why not apply the same logic to your projects? Stay the course!. Consider all the hours and legwork that got you this far and use that as the incentive to keep going.

And if all else fails, consider this: “If you’re not adding to your legacy, you’re adding to your eulogy.”

You can quote me on that if you like.

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Z.E.R.O. Interview on For Immediate Release

Those of you who don't subscribe to Shel Holtz and Neville Hobson's For Immediate Release are probably still blissfully living underneat the rock of ages where 4-color bleeds, mechanicals and 30-second spots reign supreme.

For the rest of you, you would know FIR is one of the longest standing P.R. and Communications podcasts out there. Period. And the best.

I also had the pleasure of working with both Shel and Neville during the crayon days.

Last week, my co-author, Maarten Albarda and I had a great conversation about Z.E.R.O. and I particularly enjoyed the questions from a slightly different perspective (P.R. v Advertising)

You can listen to the post directly here (or if you're subscribed to Across the Sound or Jaffe Juice podcasts, it will download automatically via iTunes). The very thoughtful post on the podcast can be found here.

If you're still interested in reviewing the book, I'll send you a copy. Let me know.

If you'd like to purchase the book, you can do so here. It comes with a full 100% money back guarantee...however you do need to pay us a 10% fee on any incremental revenue or cost savings generated beyond $1,000,000 that comes from the book. Hint: The latter scenario is much more likely (you have been warned)

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FIR Interview: Joseph Jaffe and Maarten Albarda, authors of ZERO

Z.E.R.O. Paid Media as the New Marketing Model

A month after the book launches, I'm finally getting to the blog post about my 4th book, which I've co-authored with my former client and current friend, Maarten Albarda.

Why has it taken me so long to write about it? I suppose a number of reasons:

1. I've been really busy with Evol8tion work, extensive travel and a ton of speaking, including giving the Z.E.R.O. Keynote, which I'm happy to say is extremely tight and being tremendously well received. Normally it takes me a while to find the perfect presentation mix, but with Z.E.R.O., I've hit the ground running...
2. I've had blogger's block or writer's blog or something to that effect. Writing a book really takes everything out of you and I've been waiting to find my writing groove at least on the blog
3. What I have been doing is writing Online Spin on MediaPost bi-monthly. It's been just over a year now and I'm happy to announce that I'm moving to the "Lead Off" position on Monday's, alternating with Maarten, who makes his debut next Monday.
4. Most importantly, Z.E.R.O. marketing is all about slow burn and long tail. It's about using existing customers to gain new ones. It's about utilizing customers and advocates in innovative ways, leveraging existing assets as opposed to piggy bagging on the borrowed interest and/or equity of middlemen.

So with that said, I am pleased and proud to present Z.E.R.O.: Zero Paid Media as the New Marketing Model

In Z.E.R.O., our position is that a perfect storm is coming…in fact it may already be here. To make this case, we introduce several key arguments: business, economic, consumer, media and creative cases – any of which could – by itself - be enough to be the straw that breaks the camel's back, but when combined presents a perfect storm scenario.

Our central premise is that if media inflation continues to outpace and run away from economic inflation, the bottom may fall out the media model. Put simply, it will become practically impossible to maintain minimum acceptable levels of reach, frequency, share of voice and presence in the marketplace.

Our solution for this eventuality is the Z.E.R.O. Manifesto, which holds that in a perfect world, the optimal paid media budget would be zero. In other words, brands would not need to spend a dime on paid media, because they would have enough customers; enough word-of-mouth; enough rabid fans and advocates; enough referrals; enough partnerships with entrepreneurs, startups and technology investments; and last but not least, enough assets to activate, amplify and monetize. What is an asset? Your people. Your products. Your packaging. Your clothing. Your billboards. Your trucks. Your stores. Your website. Your content.

Talk is cheap. So many books outline a problem, without putting forward a solution. Section 3 introduces a 10-point action plan, which presents 5 ways companies can implement Z.E.R.O. Internally (Cultural, Organizational), as well as 5 ways they can truly bring Z.E.R.O. to life externally (Strategic, Tactical). From compensation to budget setting; from flipping the funnel to innovation. It's all inside.

Whilst the Z.E.R.O. Vision is for brands to shift from being tenants (renting media) to landlords (owning assets), the "hidden message" here is the paid media will continue to exist (after all the world is not perfect), BUT it shifts from being the "go to" first port of call or star of the show to the final piece of the puzzle; a topper up or co-star / supporting member of the cast/ensemble. That's a significant shift as is the call-to-action for brands to audit their connections and ultimately strive for a 50:50 mix between direct:indirect (assets:media) by 2020.    

Z.E.R.O. is not for everyone and I think it's important to manage expectations. This book is specifically written for C-suite executives that work for leading brands. Which doesn't mean to say that if you are a small business owner, this book isn't for you. In fact, you should look at the struggles and challenges presenting themselves to larger companies as your "foot in the door" or gain. In the 10-point action plan for example, the first 5 items that Maarten writes about from first-hand invaluable experience should all be second nature to you and non-issues. So skip past these if you like...or plan for the time when you get so big that you too will suck (as Jay Chiat once said)

And now comes the part where I ask for your help. 

1. Buy the book. For yourself. Your clients, colleagues, partners, superiors, subordinates, friends, enemies, frienemies!
2. If you buy in bulk, I will do my best to help you out. Just contact me. I'll also try and sign copies for you, which can be done a variety of ways
3. Please review the book on Amazon.com, BN.com etc.
4. Going back to Life after the 30-second spot and Using New Marketing to Prove New Marketing (UNM2PNM) which is very keeping with the Z.E.R.O. theme, if you agree to review the book, I'll send you a copy with my compliments.

Maarten and I know that this book will leave a lot of people very uncomfortable, but it's tough love at worst and a game changer at best. Maarten and I put it this way: if we're wrong about this, you're a winner because you diversified your portfolio, you retook control as a marketer and you invested in your customer...but if we're right about this, well then you just obliterated your competition, potentially changed the game and who knows...perhaps transformed marketing from a cost center to a revenue generator. Maybe you even discovered the next Snapchat, GroupOn or Instagram in the process.

So if you haven't done so already, please give Z.E.R.O. a try. Based on the reactions we're getting from brand marketers who have embraced #zeropaidmedia already,  you'll be glad you did!

Be a hero. Commit to Z.E.R.O.

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Z.E.R.O. debuts at SxSW (with your help of course)

Yes, it's that time of the year again. Time to rock the vote as the SxSW panel picker moves into overdrive and the audience participation phase of the rigorous selection process begins.

For those of you who don't know what SxSW (South By Southwest) is, check out the Wikipedia Entry. Or if not, in short it's essentially the banner event in the entire interactive/new media/social media/emerging media (you get the picture) calendar. Think CES for consumer electronics. Cannes for Advertising. SxSW for Interactive. The festival is not only for the geeks. There's also a Film and Music festival and for those of you that can make all 3 (Interactive and Music run back to back, but Film bleeds into both), you'll benefit tremendously from the blurring and synergy that comes from naturally overlapping trades.

One of the great things about SxSW is that anyone (and I mean ANYONE) can share the stage via the Panel Picker process. Literally thousands of proposal are submitted and via a 3-pronged vetting system (staff picks, advisory board, public), the eventual shortlist is chosen.

My 4th and new book, Z.E.R.O.: Zero paid media as the new marketing model, will be on bookshelves in October and hot on the heels of this release will be a book reading proposal at SxSW, where myself and my co-author, Maarten Albarda, will highlight key excerpts, takeways and central themes of the book.

If you'd like to vote for Z.E.R.O., please do so here.

In 2013, myself and the Evol8tion team are actually under consideration for 3 separate panels. If all my panels make it, I would have to choose one (the rules), so let's cross this "good problem to have" bridge when we come to it :)

To make things easier, Evol8tion created a simple splash page, which highlights the 3 panels and links to their voting page. For your information, the 3 panels are:

• Z.E.R.O. book reading - vote here
• Brand and Startups - the good, the bad and the ugly - vote here
• Beancast live - a live recording of the popular marketing podcast - vote here

So now it's up to you to rock the vote. Here are the simple rules:

• You must register on the SXSW PanelPicker site
• You DO NOT have to be a registered attendee of SXSW to vote
• You can only cast one vote for a specifica panel
• You can vote for as many panels as you like

Of course, you can also share the panels on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. This would be awesome, but your vote would be awesom-er!

Thanks so much for your consideration!

PS In the spirit of paying it forward, if you vote for mine, I'll vote for yours. Just ping me with your panel information. Rising tide floats all boats...

 

 

 

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8 of my previous MediaPost Online Spin articles

It's been a while since I've shared my MediaPost Online Spin articles, so here are the previous 8 in reverse chronological order.

• The opportunity cost of Inertia - What is the risk of doing nothing? (August 22nd)
• The revolving door of opportunity - The window of opportuntiy has become a revolving door (August 8th)
• Mobile Addiction rules iOK - How much of this iPhone crash story is true? You decide (July 25th)
• Those who can, do; those who can't, P.R. - the pros and cons of internal v external publicity and merchandising (July 11th)
• Awarding v Rewarding Innovation - Cannes has introduced an innovation category...good or bad? (June 19th)
• When it comes to embracing startups, NYC is more like Gotham - discussing the challenges associated with local governments and disrupting business models and businesses such as AirBnB - (June 6th)
• Embrace your Inner Masochist - Pain v Pleasure as a Driver of Innovation and Change (May 23rd)
• CMO: The Chief Muddled Officer - tenure has doubled, but CMO's are as challenged as ever (May 9th)

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Jaffe Juice #171 - Chatting with Youtility author Jay Baer

I recently sat down with fellow Wiley author, Jay Baer, who co-authored The Now Revolution with Amber Naslund. He's now gone solo and written a book called Youtility.

In Life after the 30-second spot, I wrote about R.U.E. - Relevance, Utility and Entertainment (which I would now rename as - Customer - Experience). Now Jay Baer has written the definitive book on Utility. What a novel idea…brands actually being useful! Bravo!

Here is our conversation, which you can download or listen live by clicking this link.

And as a reminder, you can purchase his book here or visit his incredible book's website, which offered tremendously valuable...UTILITY....and THEN purchase the book.

Subscribe to the podcast via iTunes here for more interviews like this one, as well as my monthly debate with fellow author and thought leader, Mitch Joel.

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Evol8tion Acquires Beancast (and Bob)

I'm thrilled to announce that as of July 1st, we have two new additions to the growing Evol8tion family: The BeanCast and its host, Bob Knorpp.

The BeanCast is "The Best Marketing Podcast Anywhere" (I know this because it says so on the website) and Bob is "The Best Host Anywhere" (I know this because I've been on the show since pretty much the beginning)

I've been a regular since the early days of the show. The earliest I could find was this episode from 2009. For those of you who don't know The BeanCast, it's a weekly panel discussion on marketing, with a particular emphasis on the digital, social, mobile and emerging categories. At Evol8tion, we call that the "Innovation Continuum" (can you see a connection here?)

As one of the earliest podcasters, I remain extremely bullish on the potential and future for "the spoken work" in an increasingly digital, social and connected world. I suppose it's proof positive of the power of podcasting (alliteration) that both Bob and the Beancast have found a home under the bridge between Madison Avenue and Mountain View.

Bob joins Evol8tion as SVP, Chief Analyst of our BrandWatch product. BrandWatch is a subscription-based insight product designed to help brands understand, prioritize and evaluate their innovation needs. Bob will also use his editorial juices to invest in our Madison & Mountain View (MplusMV) publishing asset.

From an structural standpoint, nothing will change with the show itself. Bob will continue to host and maintain full editorial control. He will also continue to manage the business side of the show. What will change is that the content will become much richer and deeper as a result of Evol8tion’s BrandWatch product.

If you want to listen to a brief fireside chat between Bob and myself, here it is. OK, so we didn't sit around a fire, but it was hot enough outside today so justify the heat reference!

The full press release is below, which also documents a series of new hires, new clients and new solutions at our innovation agency:

For Immediate Release:

Evol8tion Continues Expansion With BeanCast Acquisition

BeanCast Founder Bob Knorpp Joins Evol8tion Team To Lead BrandWatch™ Offering

July 22^nd, 2013

Evol8tion (pronounced Evolution), the innovation agency co-founded by Joseph Jaffe and Gina Waldhorn, today announced they have acquired Bob Knorpp’s BeanCast Marketing Podcast for an undisclosed amount. The audio podcast features a weekly discussion with a rotating panel of global advertising and marketing experts, serving up to 75,000 shows a month.

“We’re excited to include The BeanCast as part of the Evol8tion content offering,” said Mr. Jaffe. “Our goal is to help our brand clients connect to the latest trends and innovations, and match them to startups that fit their needs. The BeanCast is clearly the best show covering the advertising technology space, and having its research and insight resources onboard will add even more value to our clients.”

As part of the deal, show host Bob Knorpp will join the Evol8tion team as SVP, Chief Analyst for BrandWatch, a subscription-based insight product designed to help brands understand, prioritize and evaluate their innovation needs.

“My vision for The BeanCast was always to provide the best possible insights and education to the marketing community,” said Knorpp. “Heading up Evol8tion’s BrandWatch product allows me to greatly enhance the quality of The BeanCast content, while more fully exploring my passion for informing and training the brand world.”

Knorpp is one of several new hires at the rapidly expanding company, joining Lauren Brown and Jessica Peltz; senior talent recruits from Carat and Zenith Media respectively.

These hires are hot on the heels of multiple key milestones for a company growing exponentially in its second year of operation. Evol8tion recently added Mondelez International to a roster of clients that already includes ABInBev and Unilever. Evol8tion is also currently running the popular Mobile Futures program with Mondelez International, currently wrapping up its North America phase and rolling out in Brazil.

Said Gina Waldhorn, Evol8tion's co-founder and COO, "We are seeing more and more blue chip brands committing themselves to consumer-facing technology innovation in digital, social, mobile and emerging platforms. Evol8tion is playing a key role in facilitating these important connections, having just finished our 15th in-market pilot program in just over a year."

Started in January 2012, Evol8tion (www.startupsforbrands.com) provides brands with a strategic and systematic process to connect with “matched” early-stage startups. Evol8tion’s core offering includes BrandWatch™, an education and evaluation framework, and BrandMatch™, an execution framework, which combine to both qualify and quantify technology solutions to solve business problems.

The BeanCast (www.thebeancast.com), now in it’s sixth year of production, will continue to produce weekly shows with Knorpp as host and producer.

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Jaffe Juice #170 - The Evolution of Online Video with Jaffe and Joel

Mitch and I sit down for our monthly debate and this one is a great discussion on the evolution of online video - Vine, Instagram Video and more. Some really great concepts introduced like "Authentic Place" vs "Authentic Voice" and more. Keeper quote: "The 30-second spot was the original SnapChat!" @jaffejuice and @mitchjoel 

Listen live or download here.

Subscribe to the show via iTunes here

Photo credit: Mashable

Jaffe Juice #169 - New Business Networking with Dave Delaney

I recently sat down with old friend and social media veteran, Dave Delaney, and now author of New Business Networking: How to Effectively Grow Your Business Network Using Online and Offline Methods.

Here is our conversation on how to ahead in today's increasingly cluttered digital, social and connected world. Download or listen live by clicking this link.

And as a reminder, you can purchase his book here.

Subscribe to the podcast via iTunes here for more interviews like this one, as well as my monthly debate with fellow author and thought leader, Mitch

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