Apple’s come in for a lot of stick over their new iPhone 4. From reception issues when held a certain way to discoloured screens and other problems, there’s no doubt Apple’s new baby isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. And yet… With one single advert, my view of iPhone 4 (as a consumer) is immediately positive again. Yes, I know it has issues. I know Steve Jobs doesn’t really seem to care about us, as product users and advocates….

When is sharing information useful, and when is it just spamming off the back of someone else’s community? I ask because when I logged into my Facebook page today to post an update on a future Bonsai Interactive event, I was met with this at the top of my wall (click to expand). It was posted by Claire Reynolds on behalf of the DSNR Media Group. At least I think it’s by Claire on behalf of DSNR, since Claire’s Facebook…

We’re watching. We’re watching what you say; how you say it; and the conviction behind it. We’re taking in the words you use; the directions you’re giving; the recommendations you’re sharing. We’re taking you at face value and trusting what our ears hear and our eyes see. Our eyes are our cameras and cameras never lie. So next time you’re about to speak, remember – we’re watching.

Creatives are often looking for the biggest bang for the buck. Marketing; PR; advertising; a lot of the time these disciplines share the same questions – what cool way can we get our product in front of someone? How much budget can we allocate to this product launch? What celebrity can we get to promote us? What lifestyle magazine can we get to write about us? All valid points, all part of the process. And there have been many examples…

You may or may not have heard of Ryan Moore. He’s a pro golfer who recently won his first tournament, the Wyndham Championship. If you haven’t heard of him, you’re not alone – he’s still ranked 120th in the world and isn’t one of the first names you think of when you think “pro golfer”. Yet despite his relative anonymity, Ryan Moore may just have made himself my new favourite sportsman. All because of $300,000. Where Ryan differs from most…

Have you signed up for Sponsored Tweets on Twitter? Or Magpie? Or TweetROI? Do you offer sponsored posts and paid reviews on your blog? If so, you might have to re-think how you share this information, thanks to a Terms of Service update from Facebook. Why does a Facebook update affect you if you’re on Twitter, or writing on your blog? Think of your Status Update box. Many users of both Facebook and Twitter have their accounts synced, so when…

My friend John Haydon shared a link with me to a video by Youtube user italktosnakes (Kristina Horner). It’s a video response to another Youtube user, nerimon (Alex Day). In both the videos, each discuss the merits of being paid to advertise products on their Youtube channels. What’s interesting is their take on how companies are approaching this. Kristina praises Ford for its Fiesta initiative (which she’s part of) while Sanyo’s “insert here” example by Alex shows a company still…

There’s a lot being said about traditional media suffering in the wake of social media acceptance. Print publications, advertising, marketing et al – they all need to “use social media or die” being a common mantra. But I’m not so sure. Yes, adapt and combine the new tools and mediums available to you. But to say that mainstream media is dead on its feet seems to be a bit of a push, particularly when many average consumers aren’t even aware…

If you’re a marketer, are you thinking about how to promote your new website or product? And if you’re a consumer, are you getting tired of lazy pitches and ideas? Take a look at the five images below – each one belongs to a Twitter account that I was notified was now following me. Every single message is the same, from how old the girl is, where she’s from, what she wants to do this weekend and what video she’s…

The advertising industry is like many other creative industries at the minute. Advertisers are looking at new ways to reach their audiences as the print industry continues to suffer and new mediums challenge ad agencies to think differently. Some agencies are doing this better than others by letting real people tell real stories. Instead of going for a celebrity endorsement, Visa Europe opted to go with Brooklyn-based artist Bill Shannon as part of their Life Flows Better campaign. Bill was…