Scott Monty

New Collaborative Economy Report Shows Importance of Price, Convenience and Brand

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Last year, we had the opportunity to review the first annual report produced by Crowd Companies, titled <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2014/03/collaboration-sharing-is-new-buying.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sharing is the New Buying</a>. This introduced the concept of the sharing / gig / collaborative economy to the world, with some definitive numbers to demonstrate that the use of consumer-powered, shared and collaborative resource was more than a fad — it was a certifiable trend and brands had an opportunity to get on board.<br />
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<a href="http://crowdcompanies.com/" target="_blank">Crowd Companies</a>, an innovation council founded by Jeremiah Owyang, has continued to thrive, attracting some scores of large companies and startups. In fact, they just introduced the <a href="http://crowdcompanies.com/introducing-the-2015-crowd-companies-awards/" target="_blank">Crowd Companies Awards for excellence in the collaborative economy</a>. The five recipients were BMW, Intuit, Whole Foods, Swisscom and Autodesk. The council provides valuable services and outlets for its members, connecting them with each other and industry experts as they grapple with the opportunities that the collaborative economy affords. [<i><b>Disclosure</b>: I signed Ford up as an inaugural member when I worked there and now I an an advisor to Crowd Companies</i>.]<br />
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<b>A New Report</b></h3>
Crowd Companies has partnered once again with <a href="http://visioncritical.com/" target="_blank">Vision Critical</a>, the leading customer intelligence platform provider, to release the 2015 report, "<a href="https://www.visioncritical.com/resources/new-rules-collaborative-economy/" target="_blank">The New Rules of the Collaborative Economy</a>," which maps the growth of the collaborative economy over the last year and the opportunities the movement offers for established global businesses.<br />
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This year's report is based on responses from over 50,000 people across the U.S. and Canada, focusing on three key areas that companies have the power to address as competition heats up from more nimble and disruptive startups: <b>price</b>, <b>brand </b>and <b>convenience</b>.<br />
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As consumers can whip out their phones to get instant, on-demand access to products and services they want, we're seeing a shift in thinking from ownership to access. It's almost expected at this point. If your business can't offer something to compete with this nearly frictionless effort, you're vulnerable.<br />
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And while there is growing concern around sharing startups' lack of regulation and aggressive global expansion, it hasn't slowed the growth of the collaborative economy (especially behemoths like Uber), making it critical for established brands to understand consumer sentiment, learn their preferences and capitalize on these shifts now more than ever.<br />
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<b><i>By 2017, eight in 10 Americans will participate in the collaborative economy.</i> [<a href="http://ctt.ec/Qt6Id" target="_blank">Tweet this</a>]</b></h4>
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Every single area of the collaborative economy is attracting greater participation, with pre-owned goods, custom products, professional services, online learning, personal services, transportation services, places to stay and crowdfunding each attracting at least 10% of the North American population in the past year. </div>
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Participation doubled across transportation services, places to stay, crowdfunding and office space with categories including professional services, loaner products, custom products and personal services growing 60-80%.<br />
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A three-pronged opportunity has emerged for large companies — but it isn't necessary to pursue all three simultaneously; there may only be one strategy that suits each brand. The point is that it's no longer an option to sit by like a fat cat and assume that might makes right. These are the three strategies mentioned in the report.<br />
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<b>Price</b></h3>
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<li>Financial savings is one of the top drivers of the collaborative economy with <b>82% of sharing transactions partially motivated by price</b>.</li>
<li>People default to traditional buying for actions such as staying in a hotel when visiting a new city (77% would stay at a hotel) or buying a wedding gift for a close friend (71% would look for a gift in a local retail store).</li>
<li>70% of people in the overall population who initially choose the sharing option would consider buying instead, if the buying option were less expensive. <b>A 25% savings would make traditional purchasers consider moving their business to the collaborative economy</b>. </li>
<li>The opportunity for big brands is to use price as a lever to retain or win customers in the collaborative economy by <b>creating peer-to-peer marketplaces</b>, allowing customers to purchase and sell pre-owned goods from established brands, or developing offerings that help people maximize the financial benefits of sharing, such as rental models.</li>
<li>Established brands are well-positioned to offer greater value to providers in the collaborative economy, of whom barely 60% were “very” or “extremely” happy with their latest transaction. </li>
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<i>To see what the customer benefits are for companies that use the collaborative economy to reach price-sensitive customers, <a href="https://www.visioncritical.com/resources/new-rules-collaborative-economy/" target="_blank">get the full report from Vision Critical</a>.</i></div>
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<b>Convenience</b></h3>
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<li style="font-weight: normal;">Convenience poses a major challenge to established companies, because it's exactly where sharing startups have a structural advantage.</li>
<li>However, convenience is a factor that established brands can compete on, with <b>value-added services that create efficiencies</b>, on-demand <b>access</b> to products and services, mobile apps, and even the sale of <b>locally-sourced and crafted products</b>.</li>
<li style="font-weight: normal;">Across all age groups, about a third of would-be buyers are swayed to consider sharing services if they offer conveniences like next-day delivery or a concierge to provide advice. </li>
<li>Technologies that underpin the collaborative economy decouple convenience from location to an unprecedented degree, yet <b>the desire for local goods was more powerful</b> in driving sharers to buy than in driving buyers to share. </li>
<li>78% of sharers indicated that convenience is the most popular reason for using shared services.</li>
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<b>Brand: Driving Business with Trust</b></h3>
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<li>There’s a close relationship between <b>brand recognition</b> and <b>market dominance</b>. More than 40% of North Americans have heard of big collaborative economy players like eBay, Craigslist, Etsy, Uber and Kickstarter, and many of the top sharing players have positive reputations.</li>
<li>Yet more than 25% of would-be sharers will consider traditional buying <b>if it means doing business with a reputable brand</b>.</li>
<li>More than a third of traditional buyers will consider home sharing or pre-owned home furnishings <b>if it comes with certification from a reputable brand</b>.</li>
<li>The role of brand in the collaborative economy presents an opportunity for large brands to take advantage by marketing on trust <b>or partnering with sharing services</b> to leverage their brand. </li>
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Trust is not to be underestimated as a motivator. And the skepticism that so much of this industry is met with — think assaults or destroyed homes with Airbnb; Uber ignoring regulations or dealing with criminal drivers — is damaging the basis of so much of that trust. Jeremiah Owyang from Crowd Companies agrees:<br />
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"But even as the collaborative economy has taken off, it’s been plagued by recurring criticisms. Some of the top players in the market – brands like Uber and Craigslist, and even peer-based Bitcoin – now face significant negative sentiment. The bigger they get, the more they’re vulnerable to a backlash from consumers who’ve had bad experiences, or observers who worry about the impact on employment, taxes or safety. To that end, with this year’s deep-dive report, we’ve looked at the opportunities the collaborative economy offers to established businesses and how to successfully combat, complement and compete with sharing startups."</blockquote>
There's much more in the full report, including statistics about adoption, recognition, preferences and more, as well as suggestions and ideas for how to meet the challenges and opportunities of the collaborative economy head-on. If you'd like a copy, <a href="https://www.visioncritical.com/resources/new-rules-collaborative-economy/" target="_blank">visit the Vision Critical website to get yours now</a>.<br />
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New Collaborative Economy Report Shows Importance of Price, Convenience and Brand

Last year, we had the opportunity to review the first annual report produced by Crowd Companies, titled Sharing is the New Buying . This...

The Week in Digital — October 26, 2015

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Street fights and intelligent discourse on Medium — including by the New York Times — Yahoo! doesn't have much to cheer about, the tech and media outlook for 2016, what journalists want, Twitter apologizes to developers, Facebook is favored by ad executives, YouTube now has a paid option, what makes a 21st century company, Uber gets more cash, Airbnb puts its foot in its mouth, the problem of podcast surplus, content personlization is next, measuring impact rather than size, real quotes, our weekly trivia challenge, the podcast pick of the week, an opportunity for agency owners from our sponsor and more, it's <b>The Week in Digital</b>.<br />
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A roundup of relevant links affecting our industry.<br />
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Each Monday we publish a newsletter that includes a series of links about current events and trends in the worlds of technology, business, digital communications and marketing in order to keep leaders up to date on changes, newsworthy items and content that might be useful in your job. A new issue is available every Monday morning. <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/subscribe.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Please subscribe</a> to keep up to date on developments.<br />
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<i>Check out our <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/recommend.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Recommended</a> section for tools to help you become a more effective marketer and communicator.</i></h3>
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Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/scott.monty">Scott Monty</a> on Sunday, October 25, 2015</blockquote>
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<b>Industry</b></h4>
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<li>Two contentious sets of arguments happened online last week, and <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/19/amazon-pr-boss-blasts-new-york-times-expose-digs-up-dirt-on-its-sources/" target="_blank">they happened on Medium</a>. [<i><b>FEATURED TOPIC</b> in this week's video above. You can view it for more in-depth commentary</i>.]</li>
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<li>In the first, Amazon's SVP of global corporate affairs <a href="https://medium.com/@jaycarney/what-the-new-york-times-didn-t-tell-you-a1128aa78931" target="_blank">Jay Carney refuted the New York Times' report</a> from this summer that indicated Amazon was a horrible place to work. And then, the NYT's executive editor Dean Baquet <a href="https://medium.com/@NYTimesComm/dean-baquet-responds-to-jay-carney-s-medium-post-6af794c7a7c6" target="_blank">replied in kind <i>on Medium</i></a>! Check out Ben Thomson's <a href="https://stratechery.com/2015/in-defense-of-the-new-york-times/" target="_blank">intelligent analysis here</a>. <i>This is a remarkable occurrence, seeing that Baquet has the Times at his disposal. But it goes to show how taking the fight to the streets is sometimes necessary and even more powerful than traditional media</i>.</li>
<li>In the second, Susan Crawford wrote of her disdain for Uber on Medium in <a href="https://medium.com/backchannel/getting-over-uber-fdf75faf7f6e#.2qknwxmlr" target="_blank">Getting Over Uber</a>. Tim O'Reilly countered on the same platform with <a href="https://medium.com/backchannel/getting-over-taxis-79849b3a4282#.a2i0csgas" target="_blank">Getting Over Taxis</a>. <i>The simple interface, the ability to highlight text (and see what others have highlighted), the ease of sharing and the ability to add commentary all make this a robust and lively community for discourse</i>.</li>
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medium: home to corporate slap fights.</div>
— Brian Morrissey (@bmorrissey) <a href="https://twitter.com/bmorrissey/status/656165366771486720">October 19, 2015</a></blockquote>
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<li>There are <a href="http://www.marketingcharts.com/traditional/how-is-marketings-role-expanding-and-what-disruptive-forces-is-it-facing-60339/" target="_blank">disruptive forces affecting the marketing industry</a> identified by the Association of National Advertisers. From the Internet of Things to competition from agile/nimble competitors, the space is heating up. When you add the battling forces of consumer expectations, the advance of new technology and the complexity of the industry, you have a volatile mixture of forces. <i>Ultimately, the role of marketing is expanding. It's a great time to be in marketing</i>.</li>
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<li>At last week's MarketingProfs B2B Forum, Avinash Kaushik stressed thinking like humans and not like robots to <a href="http://www.toprankblog.com/2015/10/avinash-kaushik-mpb2b/" target="_blank">focus on user intent</a>. His formula is: See. Think. Do. Care.</li>
<li>The <a href="https://www.bulldogreporter.com/what-should-pr-offer-todays-journalists-multimedia-releases-live-streaming-apps-online-newsrooms-play-big-roles-in-coverage/" target="_blank">2015 Business Wire Media Survey</a> showed that journalists prefer c<span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">ompelling multimedia-rich corporate news content, s</span><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">ocial media shares, not social media pitches, and u</span><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">pdated, responsive online newsrooms for media research.</span></li>
<li><span style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">CNN has launched <a href="http://greatbigstory.com/" target="_blank">Great Big Story</a>, a direct response to the likes of BuzzFeed and Vice, meant to appeal to "</span><a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3051812/cnn-launches-great-big-story-its-answer-to-vice-and-buzzfeed" target="_blank">urban-located, globally curious 25- to 35-year-olds</a>." <i>Let's hope they understand this demographic better than they understand their waning television audience</i>.</li>
<li>If you want a sense as to where <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/michael-wolf-predicts-what-will-happen-in-the-tech-industry-in-2016-2015-10" target="_blank">the tech and media industries are heading next year</a>, take a look at the <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/ActivateInc/activate-tech-and-media-outlook-2016" target="_blank">presentation</a> from business strategist Michael Wolf [embedded below] that focuses on topics such as messaging, streaming audio, gaming, cord-cutting and more.</li>
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<b>Trivia question: Instagram's new Boomerang app will record 1-second videos. What makes this different from animated GIFs? *</b></h3>
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<b>Platforms</b></h4>
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<li><b>Yahoo!</b></li>
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<li> Q3 earnings at Yahoo! <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/20/yahoo-misses-on-earnings-as-wall-street-worries-about-core-business-and-alibaba-spin/" target="_blank">were a miss</a>, and even the search deal Google wasn't enough to lift investor spirits. </li>
<li>The <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/19/yahoo-talent-exodus-accelerates-as-marissa-mayers-turnaround-flounders/" target="_blank">mass exodus of a number of high-level executives</a> leaves some questioning Marissa Mayer's turnaround efforts. Some are even <a href="http://research.gigaom.com/2015/10/yahoo-defections-show-marissa-mayer-has-failed-profoundly/" target="_blank">calling it a rout</a>.</li>
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<li><b>Twitter</b></li>
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<li> Twitter is giving all users the ability to post polls via a tweet. <i>Just in time for the election year ahead. Is this A) a good idea; or B) a bad idea?</i></li>
<li>At the Twitter developers conference, <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/21/twitter-ceo-dorsey-apologizes-to-developers-says-he-wants-to-reset-relations/#.fvmhl3:ENCK" target="_blank">CEO Jack Dorsey apologized to developers</a> for the company's less-than-stellar relationship with them in the past, pledging a better relationship ahead.</li>
<li><i>The New Yorker</i> wonders <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/jack-in-a-box-can-twitter-be-saved" target="_blank">if Jack is the prescription for what ails Twitter</a>. <i>If it's not him, then who would it be?</i></li>
<li>Two weeks after its launch, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-23/twitter-rolls-out-advertising-on-new-moments-feature-ig3ufzdk" target="_blank">brands can now advertise on Moments</a>. The first ran over the weekend. <i>Clearly a native advertising play, Moments leaves advertisers more creative room</i>.</li>
<li><a href="http://marketingland.com/twitter-publish-twitters-new-tool-for-embedding-tweets-148030" target="_blank">Embedded Grid is a new way to share selected content</a> (such as multiple tweets) in a highly visual way. You can begin experimenting with it a <a href="http://publish.twitter.com/">publish.twitter.com</a>. <i>This will be an important tool for journalists and media companies as they curate sources and material to support stories</i>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Facebook</b></li>
<ul>
<li>It should come as no surprise that <a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Ad-Execs-Give-Facebook-Highest-Grades-Social-Ad-Effectiveness/1013123?ecid=NL1001" target="_blank">Facebook gets the highest marks from ad executives</a> for driving ROI, over all other social networks. <i>The targeting is more precise and they know more about their users than anyone else. Used intelligently, Facebook is a powerful brand builder</i>.</li>
<li><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/22/facebook-search/" target="_blank">Facebook Search is now fully functional for all users</a>. You can now search for content in addition to friends or brand pages. <i>The impact to real-time news should be significant</i>.</li>
<li>Speaking of real-time — that's Twitter's area. Turn now to Jay Baer to see <a href="http://www.convinceandconvert.com/social-media-strategy/how-facebook-is-slowly-strangling-twitter/" target="_blank">how Facebook is putting the screws to Twitter</a>.</li>
<li>Page administrators, stay on the lookout for this: <a href="http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/add-sponsor-page-posts/628537" target="_blank">the ability to add sponsors to Page posts</a>. At this point, it looks like something Facebook is experimenting with, but it may roll out more widely soon.</li>
<li>Messaging is important, as you read in the above tech and media report. <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/20/facebooks-chris-cox-talks-about-expanding-messaging/?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonvKTJZKXonjHpfsX54uUuT%2Frn28M3109ad+rmPBy924ICWp8na+qWCgseOrQ8mFkIV8izUs0TrKM%3D" target="_blank">Here's how Facebook is thinking about expanding Messenger</a>.</li>
<li>With all of this, it should be no surprise that <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/10/16/facebook-wants-you-to-spend-all-your-time-on-facebook/" target="_blank">Facebook wants us to spend all of our time online on Facebook</a>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li><b>Google</b></li>
<ul>
<li>YouTube's <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/21/9586656/youtube-red-subscription-service-hands-on-video-release-date" target="_blank">new ad-free service Red</a> is $9.99 a month, allows viewers to save videos to be watched offline, features original content and gives users access to Play Music. Take a step behind the scenes with <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/21/9566973/youtube-red-ad-free-offline-paid-subscription-service" target="_blank">YouTube Red's chief business officer</a>.</li>
<li>But <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/23/9602998/espn-youtube-red-blackout-pulling-videos" target="_blank">ESPN is already removing its channels on YouTube</a> over objection to the new paid service. </li>
<li>Google knows that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/google-ad-boss-sridhar-ramaswamy-on-ad-blockers-2015-10" target="_blank">ad blockers are a very bad thing</a> — and they have reason to be worried.</li>
<li>In its Q3 earnings call, Google's Alphabet <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/22/alphabet-hid-a-google-y-math-joke-in-its-stock-buyback/?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonvKTMZKXonjHpfsX54uUuT%2Frn28M3109ad+rmPBy924IHWp8na+qWCgseOrQ8mFkIV8izUs0TrKM%3D" target="_blank">sneaked in a math joke</a>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Instagram</b> </li>
<ul>
<li>This year, nearly 33% of companies with 100 employees or more use Instagram; <a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Number-of-Companies-Using-Instagram-Nearly-Double-Next-Year/1013122?ecid=NL1001" target="_blank">next year, it will be nearly 49%</a>. By 2017, it will surpass Twitter, according to eMarketer. <i>That is, assuming Twitter doesn't improve</i>.</li>
<li>In their latest "Taking Stock with Teens" report, Piper Jaffray shared that <a href="http://www.marketingcharts.com/online/instagram-remains-teens-most-important-social-network-snapchat-gains-steam-60344/" target="_blank">teens' most important social network is Instagram</a>. <i>Of course, it also shows that Facebook hasn't changed in importance since last year, despite all of the "sky is falling" predictions</i>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<b>Collaborative Economy</b> </h4>
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<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;"><i>Fortune</i> takes a look at <a href="http://fortune.com/2015/10/22/six-truths-21st-century-corporation/?xid=soc_socialflow_twitter_FORTUNE" target="_blank">what makes a 21st century corporation</a>. There are at least six truths to consider: </li>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">It doesn't take a lot of physical capital.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Human capital matters more than ever.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">The nature of employment will change as the gig economy takes off.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Winners win even bigger than before, leaving less for the defeated.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Corporations' lives will be shorter than ever.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">As more value comes from intellectual property (and human capital, above), income can be shifted to tax havens.</li>
</ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">Crowd Companies recognized businesses that are succeeding in the collaborative economy with its <a href="http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2015/10/20/introducing-the-2015-crowd-companies-awards-2/" target="_blank">first annual Crowd Companies Awards</a>. Autodesk, BMW, Intuit Swisscom and Whole Foods were among the recipients.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Home services company <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/19/thumbtack-hires-first-cfo-and-snags-top-political-operative-from-airbnb/?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonvKvBZKXonjHpfsX54uUuT%2Frn28M3109ad+rmPBy924IBWp8na+qWCgseOrQ8mFkIV8izUs0TrKM%3D" target="_blank">Thumbtack has hired its first CFO</a> and a political operative from Airbnb. They manage 200,000 service professionals in 50 states.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Uber</b></li>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">Uber is raising another round of money — this time it's <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/24/business/dealbook/uber-said-to-plan-another-1-billion-in-fund-raising.html?_r=0" target="_blank">$1 billion on a $70 billion valuation</a>. <i>Hey, what's a billion dollars between friends, right?</i></li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Uber currently covers <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/23/9603324/uber-coverage-rural-areas-dominance-plan" target="_blank">75% of the United States</a> but may have difficulty covering the entire country. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/uber-ceo-kalanick-30-of-our-trips-take-place-in-china-1445404448?alg=y" target="_blank">30% of Uber's trips take place in China</a>, making it as large of a market as the US.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Yidao Yongche is another Chinese rival; <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/20/yidao-yongche-a-lesser-rival-to-uber-in-china-raises-700m-at-a-1b-valuation/#.fvmhl3:f3WM" target="_blank">it has raised $700 million</a>, including a 70% stake from the smartphone and video company LeTV.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Travis Kalanick says that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/uber-ceo-travis-kalanick-on-self-driving-cars-2015-10" target="_blank">Uber needs self-driving cars to avoid ending up like the taxi industry</a>. <i>We're assuming he means that they need to embrace the future, not that their existing drivers will become more jaded and rude without it</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">A small livery service in Brooklyn <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3051964/in-brooklyn-mom-and-pop-car-services-launch-new-apps-to-stave-off-uber" target="_blank">is launching apps to compete</a> with Uber.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0%2Fbb5fa9ee-78e7-11e5-933d-efcdc3c11c89.html" target="_blank">Karhoo has raised $250 million</a> to supply taxi groups with an app to compete with Uber in London, Singapore and New York.</li>
</ul>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Airbnb</b></li>
<ul>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
Airbnb found how much revulsion it could create <a href="http://m.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2015/10/21/passive-aggressive-pro-airbnb-ads-appear-on-muni-shleters" target="_blank">with its passive-aggressive ad campaign</a>. Now that Airbnb is paying its city taxes, it seems that the room-sharing company would like to tell San Francisco how to use that money. In one instance, it directed this at the library system: <b>We hope you use some of the $12 million in hotel taxes to keep the library open later.</b> <i>The new sharing economy tells the old sharing economy how to behave</i>.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.prweek.com/article/1369847/airbnb-apologized-its-way-too-snarky-san-francisco-ads" target="_blank">The CMO quickly apologized</a> and said that the ads would be taken down immediately.</div>
</li>
</ul>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;">Sponsor</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></b><b>Must-attend workshop — Money Matters for Agency Owners</b></h2>
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<span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="http://agencymanagementinstitute.com/advertising-agency-training/owner-workshops/financial-firepower/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="108" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8oc0UTzoaV4/VhH0TQgYzUI/AAAAAAAAiqw/PGV3k6xHC5A/s640/Money%2BMatters%2Bworkshop.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<b><br />
</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>December 8 - 9 in Orlando</b>. Explore best practices of how agencies are making and keeping more money from an industry expert who works with 250+ privately owned small to mid-sized agencies every year. Learn how to tell at a glance if you’re making money, if you’re staffed properly and how to keep more of what you earn.</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: left;">
"The conversation about taxes alone was worth the workshop fee. I went home and ran our numbers through your financial dashboard and couldn’t believe my eyes. Thank you!"</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://agencymanagementinstitute.com/advertising-agency-training/owner-workshops/financial-firepower/" target="_blank">Register today</a> for your chance to fine-tune your business.</span></div>
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<b>Audio</b></h4>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">You know NPR has become a thing when <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/25/fashion/npr-voice-has-taken-over-the-airwaves.html?referer=http%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com&_r=0" target="_blank">"NPR voice" has taken over the audio waves</a>. <i>You can thank Ira Glass and Susan Stamberg</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">But NPR is losing younger listeners, leaving it with an older but generous audience. <i>I guess that NPR voice is something of a siren call after all. Maybe NPR needs to switch to <a href="http://www.refinery29.com/2015/05/87351/female-podcast-voices-vocal-fry" target="_blank">vocal fry</a> as its <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfgBgpFJYto" target="_blank">new voice</a></i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Chicago has its own cooperative that supports podcasts. <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2015/10/the-chicago-podcast-cooperative-wants-to-let-independent-audio-thrive-in-the-windy-city/" target="_blank">And it's all thanks to Cards Against Humanity</a>. <i>The power of a local network of 30 shows is not to be underestimated when it comes to advertising possibilities</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Pandora is having some issues. In Q3 it <a href="http://fortune.com/2015/10/23/pandora-stock/" target="_blank">lost $85 million</a> and its stock dropped 30% upon the announcement. With increased competition from Spotify, Deezer and Apple Music, its success isn't as guaranteed as it once seemed.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">However, Pandora isn't alone in one instance: along with the music industry, Pandora thinks YouTube and Spotify aren't playing fair in that <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/24/pandora-and-the-music-labels-finally-agree-on-something-theyre-all-mad-at-spotify-and-youtube/" target="_blank">they allow users to listen to whatever they want for as long as they want</a>. <i>That's exactly why Spotify is growing in popularity</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">There are too many good podcasts out there. What happens <a href="http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2015/10/the-coming-podcast-surplus.html" target="_blank">when we have a podcast surplus</a>?</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><b>Podcast Recommendation of the Week</b>. This week, check out <a href="http://www.twistimage.com/podcast/" target="_blank">Six Pixels of Separation</a>, hosted by marketing whiz Mitch Joel. Each week, Mitch interviews a guest from the business world and asks some of the most insightful and probing questions. Subscribe today. <i>Do you have a podcast recommendation for us? Add yours to our Google Sheet:  <a href="http://smonty.co/yourpodcasts">smonty.co/yourpodcasts</a></i></li>
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<b>Content</b></h4>
<ul><b></b></ul>
<ul>
<li>Looking for some inspiring visual content? The British Library just made over <a href="http://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/news/illustration/british-library-offers-over-1-million-free-vintage-images-for-download/" target="_blank">1 million vintage images available for free download</a>. Where can you find them? Why, <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/britishlibrary/" target="_blank">Flickr</a>, of course! <i>Let's hope Marissa Mayer's plans work out</i>.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.convinceandconvert.com/podcasts/episodes/why-personalization-is-the-next-wave-of-content-marketing/?mc_cid=b5cb4958db&mc_eid=6b50f1b70a" target="_blank">Personalized content is the next wave</a> of content marketing. Listen in to find out why.</li>
<li>Shoppers want personalized content; <a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Shoppers-Want-Personalization/1013129?ecid=NL1001" target="_blank">the most popular way of delivering that to them by far is email</a>.</li>
<li>We all know content marketing is important, but <a href="https://contently.com/strategist/2015/04/14/how-we-calculate-the-roi-of-our-content-marketing-in-one-duck-themed-tale/" target="_blank">how do you measure the impact of your content</a>? </li>
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<b>Metrics / Measurement / Data</b></h4>
<ul>
<li>A valuable lesson in specifying what you're measuring — in this case <a href="https://medium.com/@ev/a-mile-wide-an-inch-deep-48f36e48d4cb#.ujum3nhm2" target="_blank">measuring impact rather than size</a>.</li>
<li>Measuring leads is attractive. <a href="http://brandsavant.com/brandsavant/the-fatal-attraction-of-lead-measurement" target="_blank">But your timing is off</a>.</li>
<li>With the amount of data currently being collected, <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/24/were-sitting-on-a-big-data-time-bomb/" target="_blank">there's a big data time bomb waiting to go off</a> that may result in less transparency, rising personnel costs and communications blockage.</li>
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<b>Privacy / Security / Legal</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Facebook this week warned users that they might be part of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/facebook-security/notifications-for-targeted-attacks/10153092994615766?_rdr=p" target="_blank">targeted attacks and should secure their accounts now</a>.</li>
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<b>* Answer to the trivia question above: </b></h3>
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<li><i> </i>Instagram's Boomerang records 1-second videos, but rather than looping from the beginning every time, <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/22/instagram-boomerang-app/" target="_blank">they play backwards and then forward again</a>.</li>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/143161189?byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe></div>
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<b>When You Have the Time: Essential Watching / Listening / Reading</b> </h4>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/ad-blocking-and-the-future-of-advertising-with-seth-godin/" target="_blank">Mitch Joel sat down with Seth Godin</a> to discuss and debate the ongoing ad blocking crisis. As usual, Seth had some important insights to share. Take a listen to this episode of our recommended podcast this week.</li>
<li>It can be rough out there. Inspire your boss and colleagues with some <a href="http://www.definitelyrealquotes.com/" target="_blank">definitely real quotes</a>.</li>
<li>The human brain isn't primed for <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/oct/21/choice-stressing-us-out-dating-partners-monopolies" target="_blank">the number of choices it faces today</a>. </li>
<ul>
<li>Believe me, I know. Whether it's toothpaste, orange juice or yogurt, brand extensions are making for a less-than-ideal consumer experience.</li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NkSIlMohyQI/Vi2a2gp7fKI/AAAAAAAAi7I/d2_x5mIWnds/s1600/Brand%2Bextensions.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NkSIlMohyQI/Vi2a2gp7fKI/AAAAAAAAi7I/d2_x5mIWnds/s640/Brand%2Bextensions.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://smonty.co/announcemt" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I advise agencies and brands to help them improve their corporate and digital acumen</a>. Please <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/contact.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">get in touch</a> if you'd like to put my experience and digital smarts to work on a project, to consult with your group, or to address an audience at your next corporate or industry event.</div>
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<i>Image credit: <a href="https://flic.kr/p/7QzY5z" target="_blank">Kuba Bożanowski (Flickr)</a></i><br />
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The Week in Digital — October 26, 2015

Street fights and intelligent discourse on Medium — including by the New York Times — Yahoo! doesn't have much to cheer about, the ...

The Week in Digital - October 19, 2015

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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xCTVUECAIZ4/ViR6foJijnI/AAAAAAAAi0c/VIGyARnquow/s1600/For%2BWhom%2Bthe%2BBell%2BTolls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="For Whom the Bell Tolls - destroyed bridge" border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xCTVUECAIZ4/ViR6foJijnI/AAAAAAAAi0c/VIGyARnquow/s640/For%2BWhom%2Bthe%2BBell%2BTolls.jpg" title="Burning a bridge in For Whom the Bell Tolls" width="640" /></a></div>
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The triumph of a whistleblower, getting dangerously close to Orwell's vision, <i>Playboy</i> strips out the photos, open unhappiness at PepsiCo, Twitter's new executive chairman lacks tweets, Buy directly from Facebook, YouTube's subscriptions are coming, Uber strike, local delivery via Amazon, WNYC's podcating venture, diversification matters for movie studios, detecting sarcasm with machines, the password may be getting replaced, the effect of maximum phone, our weekly trivia challenge, the podcast of the week an opportunity from our sponsor and more, it's <b>The Week in Digital</b>.<br />
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A roundup of relevant links affecting our industry.<br />
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Each Monday we publish a newsletter that includes a series of links about current events and trends in the worlds of technology, business, digital communications and marketing in order to keep leaders up to date on changes, newsworthy items and content that might be useful in your job. A new issue is available every Monday morning. <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/subscribe.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Please subscribe</a> to keep up to date on developments.<br />
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News items are in regular text; <i>additional commentary has been added in italics</i>.<br />
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<b>Industry</b></h4>
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<li>Once again, we return to the topic of ethics. <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/10/the-week-in-digital-october-12-2015.html" target="_blank">Sniply</a>, <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/10/the-week-in-digital-october-5-2015.html" target="_blank">Peeple</a>, <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/09/the-week-in-digital-september-21-2015.html" target="_blank">ad blocking</a> and <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/09/the-week-in-digital-september-28-2015.html" target="_blank">click fraud</a> have been our topics in the previous four weeks. And while those have been about using technology in a way that it perhaps was not intended, now we come to fraud. </li>
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<li>Last year, <a href="http://www.unmarketing.com/2014/11/24/for-whom-the-bell-mobility-tolls-employee-5-star-app-reviews/" target="_blank">Scott Stratten called out Bell Canada</a> [read it - it's an amazing story] for using its own employees to boost the ratings and reviews of its mobility app. Canada's Competition Bureau has <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/bell-hit-with-1-25m-fine-for-planting-4-star-reviews-for-phone-apps-1.3271222" target="_blank">levied a $1.25 million fine against the telco</a> for its deceptive behavior.</li>
<li><a href="http://consumerist.com/2015/10/16/amazon-sues-1114-individual-reviewers-for-hire/" target="_blank">Amazon is suing 1,114 individual reviewers</a> who make themselves available for hire. <i>My naivety is exposed: I had no idea you could hire freelancers to fake reviews for you</i>.</li>
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<li>We were trained to understand that "seeing is believing." But in an era when anyone can change the facts with a few keystrokes, just what is real? Does objectivity still have a place in our ever-morphing world? And what does that mean for historians? <a href="http://www.occamsrazr.com/2015/10/16/objective-reality-rip/" target="_blank">Ike Piggot takes a deep dive into a subject first broached by George Orwell in <i>1984</i></a>.</li>
<li>You probably could have seen this coming, but <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/business/media/nudes-are-old-news-at-playboy.html?smtyp=cur&_r=0" target="_blank">iconic men's magazine <i>Playboy</i> is doing away with nude photos</a>, saying that the Internet meets demand. <i>Insert your own supply-and-demand joke here. I'm glad to know I'm finally justified in saying I read it only for the articles</i>.</li>
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<li>If you'd like to lay bare your interest in reading, check out <a href="https://longform.org/publications/playboy" target="_blank">Longform's collection of some of the best articles from <i>Playboy</i> over the years</a>. </li>
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<li>In order to retain advertisers, <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/magazines-try-new-tactic-money-back-if-ad-fails-to-deliver-1444683026" target="_blank">magazines are promising advertisers their money back if ads fail to deliver</a>. <i>So <b>that's</b> why Playboy is nixing its photos</i>...</li>
<li>A PepsiCo executive <a href="http://adage.com/article/special-report-ana-annual-meeting-2015/agencies-fire-ana-convention/300942/" target="_blank">isn't too thrilled with the ad agency world</a>, complaining about complacency, outdated methods and global alignment. <i>One has to wonder whether he's talking about agencies in general or Pepsico's agencies</i>.</li>
<li>The 6% of the U.S. population that are cord-cutters shouldn't stress out cable companies; <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/cmo-today-1444608444" target="_blank">it's the cord-nevers</a> that are of concern. This includes 7% of the U.S. population.</li>
<li>Out-of-home might seem outdated; it's anything but. In 2015, some <a href="http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Digital-Account-40-of-Out-of-Home-Ad-Spending-2015/1013107?ecid=NL1009" target="_blank">40% of OOH is digital content</a>. <i>The possibilities of offline-to-online continue to grow</i>.</li>
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<b>Trivia question: Pakistani entrepreneurs launched Uber for ________ last week. <i>Fill in the blank</i>.*</b></h3>
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<b>Platforms</b></h4>
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<li><b>Twitter</b></li>
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<li><a href="http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/14/twitter-names-ex-google-exec-omid-kordestani-executive-chairman/" target="_blank">Twitter has a new executive chairman</a>: Omid Kordestani, the 11th employee of Google. <i>Some think that his lack of tweeting is a detriment; on the contrary, it may be exactly the type of fresh leadership that the company needs</i>.</li>
<li>In a <a href="http://withoutbullshit.com/blog/jack-dorseys-twitter-layoff-email-shows-the-value-of-honesty/" target="_blank">frank and refreshingly honest email</a>, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced that <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/13/twitter-layoffs-part-cost-cutting-measures/73741768/" target="_blank">up to 8% of the company's employees would be laid off</a>. 
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<li>Web users will be able to <a href="https://support.twitter.com/articles/20172128" target="_blank">upload video directly to Twitter</a> and mobile users can record a video directly in the app.</li>
<li><a href="https://medium.com/bad-words/why-twitter-s-dying-and-what-you-can-learn-from-it-9ed233e37974" target="_blank">What's killing Twitter?</a> The same thing that's killing the rest of the social web. <i>Namely, people</i>. </li>
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<li><b>Facebook</b></li>
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<li>Shopping and Facebook are getting even more intertwined. A new ad experience called <a href="https://www.facebook.com/business/news/shopping-on-facebook" target="_blank">Canvas will allow users to browse and purchase products in-app</a> through a Buy button. <i>Expect this to be a major driver for Facebook to continue to prove its ad effectiveness</i>.</li>
<li>One of the biggest challenges in e-commerce is attribution. But most solutions look at how channels are related rather than how consumers are related. <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/17/can-facebook-solve-the-family-attribution-gap/" target="_blank">Facebook may have the solution for the current gap in family attribution</a>. </li>
<li><a href="https://gigaom.com/2015/10/14/details-emerge-about-facebooks-news-app-notify/" target="_blank">The Notify app is yet another weapon in Facebook's news arsenal</a>, as it continues to build relationships with news outlets, publishers and a news-hungry user base.</li>
<li>Facebook's On This Day can bring up painful memories for individuals who have lost a loved one or faced a tragic circumstance. After listening to feedback, Facebook created <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/13/9518069/facebook-on-this-day-memory-filter" target="_blank">a new filter that allows users to remove the nostalgia that hurts them</a>.</li>
<li>While Messenger may seem terribly simple, it is <a href="http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2015/11/features/inside-facebook-messenger" target="_blank">Facebook's key to so much more</a>.</li>
<li><a href="http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/13/facebook-goes-after-youtube-with-video-suggestion-floating-screen-and-dedicated-feed/" target="_blank">Facebook is going head-to-head with YouTube</a> as Facebook video will offer video suggestions, a floating screen and a dedicated video feed.</li>
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<li><b>Google</b></li>
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<li>And YouTube is going up against Netflix as <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/16/youtube-will-make-you-pay-to-see-some-of-its-new-videos/" target="_blank">some of its videos will only be available through its subscription service</a>. Expect to learn about the programming this week at YouTube's October 21 event. </li>
<li>If you haven't been paying attention to YouTube stars, you need to be. <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/maddieberg/2015/10/14/the-worlds-highest-paid-youtube-stars-2015/" target="_blank">The top earners made seven to eight figures last year</a>. And they have tens of millions of loyal subscribers. 
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<li>Pinterest expects its revenue <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/16/leaked-pinterest-documents-show-revenue-growth-forecasts/" target="_blank">to increase by nearly 20X</a> by 2018. <i>With over <a href="https://blog.pinterest.com/en/7-billion-pins-places-and-counting" target="_blank">7 billion pinned places</a>, local merchants could play an important role in that</i>.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/10/the-week-in-digital-october-12-2015.html" target="_blank">Just last week we shared a link</a> that opined that Instagram was still doing well because brands haven't ruined it yet. This week, we have a complaint that <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/17/9560475/instagram-lazy-terrible-ads" target="_blank">Instagram's standards for brand ads are getting lax</a>. <i>That didn't take long</i>.</li>
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<li>Why I Unfollowed You on Instagram is less about the platform and more about <a href="https://medium.com/@iancr/why-i-unfollowed-you-on-instagram-4d36dc697bdb" target="_blank">the need to have an intelligent interest-based feed</a> rather than one based on individuals. <i>Isn't that what the hashtag is for?</i></li>
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<b>Collaborative Economy</b> </h4>
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<li style="text-align: left;">A group of Uber drivers calling themselves <a href="http://mashable.com/2015/10/16/uber-driver-strike/#FMXFml6KuPqn" target="_blank">UBER Freedom chose to strike over the weekend</a>, calling for the addition of a tip option on the app, a 60% increase in UberX fares and an increase in the minimum fare.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">They might want to try Lyft, which is <a href="http://wtvr.com/2015/10/09/lyft-battles-uber-for-drivers-with-new-perks/" target="_blank">offering perks for its drivers</a>, such as gas discounts, optional tips, and a direct deposit option.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Stuck in an Uber while the game is on? No worries. <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/16/9550227/uber-att-u-verse-college-football-streaming" target="_blank">Uber and AT&T are pairing up to offer streaming college football games</a> in vehicles.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/14/uber-gets-serious-about-delivery-its-no-longer-an-experiment/?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonvKrMZKXonjHpfsX54uUuT%2Frn28M3109ad+rmPBy924MAWp8na+qWCgseOrQ8mFkIV8izUs0TrKM%3D" target="_blank">UberRush is a local merchant delivery program</a> that is official in New York City and is expanding to Chicago and San Francisco. It already faces competition from incumbents like Deliv and now <a href="http://www.geekwire.com/2015/confirmed-amazon-flex-officially-launches-and-its-like-uber-for-package-delivery/" target="_blank">Amazon has launched Flex, its package delivery service</a>. <i>This will be the ultimate test of Uber's logistics capabilities as they try to coordinate deliveries with ride hailing</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Sometimes, you need something different. Like the new ride-hailing service <a href="http://elitedaily.com/humor/schlep-jewish-mothers-uber/858076/" target="_blank">Schlep</a>.</li>
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<b>Audio</b></h4>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/business/media/wnyc-to-open-new-podcast-division.html?referer=http%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com" target="_blank">WNYC is opening its own podcast division</a>. The NPR powerhouse will now no longer rely solely on NPR for distribution, but will have a solid set of its own shows going out via the web. <i>They'll be able to retain talent and attract a loyal core group of listeners as well</i>. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Spotify rival <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/15/spotify-rival-deezer-to-raise-upwards-of-335m-from-french-public-listing/" target="_blank">Deezer is raising $343 million</a> as it plans its IPO in France. <i>Audio — particularly streaming audio — is big business</i>.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">New feature: our <b>Podcast Recommendation of the Week</b>. This week, check out WNYC's own <a href="http://radiolab.org/" target="_blank">Radiolab</a>, a podcast weaving stories and science into sound and music-rich documentaries. <i>Do you have a podcast recommendation for us? Add yours to our Google Sheet:  <a href="http://smonty.co/yourpodcasts">smonty.co/yourpodcasts</a></i></li>
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<b>Content</b></h4>
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<li>Warner Bros. is having trouble with the financial performance of some of its movies; <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/warner-loses-at-box-office-but-its-videogames-score-big-1444603877" target="_blank">its videogame division however, is raking in the money</a>. Studios — as well as many diversified companies — are wise to consider where else they might apply their franchises.</li>
<li>You say "content marketing," but are you actually referring to advertising? See what <a href="http://adage.com/article/ad-age-research/content-advertising/300858/" target="_blank">the godfather of content marketing has to say</a> about it. </li>
<li><a href="http://www.swordandthescript.com/2015/10/pr-effective-content-marketing/" target="_blank">The best-kept secret of content marketing</a> isn't marketing at all.</li>
<li><a href="https://contently.com/strategist/2015/04/15/the-new-weapon-of-choice-in-the-social-platform-wars-content/" target="_blank">Publish or perish</a> is as true in the content marketing and social world as in academia.</li>
<li>While 53% of U.S. consumers feel there's too much content online compared to five years ago, <a href="http://www.marketingcharts.com/online/authenticity-and-design-how-consumers-feel-about-online-content-60002/" target="_blank">a clear majority have doubts as to the authenticity of that content</a>. <i>Ref: trust, ethics above</i>.</li>
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<span style="text-align: start;">What if you could put together a plan, a strategy, and a budget rooted in reality that gave you the resources you need to succeed? In less than one hour, you can build a data-driven customer journey and <a href="https://gumroad.com/a/356398195" target="_blank">emerge with an actionable plan to prepare you for 2016</a>.</span></h3>
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<span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://gumroad.com/a/356398195" target="_blank"><img alt="data-driven customer journey and marketing planning framework" border="0" height="272" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zlNl7Ke8gTo/VhGjbqV4EwI/AAAAAAAAiqE/5uNTPFWh4XA/s400/Marketing%2BPlanning%2BFramework.PNG" title="2016 marketing planning framework" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure: affiliate link</span></i></div>
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<b>Metrics / Measurement / Data</b></h4>
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<li>One of the most difficult things to measure online is sarcasm. It's a very human trait and even with machine learning, it's difficult for an automated process to detect. <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/company/announcements/cornell-tech-challenge-productize-sarcasm-detection-note-this-is-not-sarcasm/" target="_blank">Bloomberg is working with Cornell University to productize sarcasm detection</a> under the Cornell Tech Challenge. <i>Yeah, that'll work</i>.</li>
<li>Using <a href="http://www.shiftcomm.com/2015/10/how-to-help-sales-and-pr-speak-the-same-language/" target="_blank">metrics to help align your PR and sales efforts</a>.</li>
<li>If you're using video, you'd probably like to know how your video efforts are performing. <a href="https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/articles/youtube-insights-stats-data-trends-vol10.html?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRogva3PZKXonjHpfsX+4u4vUa+g38431UFwdcjKPmjr1YUAT8Z0aPyQAgobGp5I5FEMSrTYX7Z4t6MIXA%3D%3D" target="_blank">Google's Brand Lift is one way</a> to go about it.</li>
<li>Engagement rates are down; you might want to be sure <a href="http://www.socialbakers.com/blog/2384-measuring-the-right-social-kpis?mc_cid=0bcd029f09&mc_eid=6b50f1b70a" target="_blank">you're measuring the right KPIs</a>.</li>
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<b>Privacy / Security / Legal</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Twitter suspended the <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/12/twitter-suspends-accounts-of-well-known-sports-publishers-for-violating-copyrights/" target="_blank">DeadSpin and SBNation Twitter accounts</a> last week for violating copyrights of the National Football League. Their offense? They shared animated GIFs of game highlights and the NFL filed over a dozen DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) takedown notices. <i>But who is in the right here? <a href="http://fortune.com/2015/10/13/deadspin-nfl-twitter/" target="_blank">Journalistic use of content should fall under the concept of fair use</a>, and shutting down an entire news outlet is a drastic measure</i>.</li>
<li>You probably heard that Dell is buying EMC for $67 billion. But at the same time, they're <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevemorgan/2015/10/14/dells-secret-cybersecurity-ipo/" target="_blank">spinning out their cybersecurity unit in an IPO</a>, giving IBM some competition.  </li>
<li><a href="http://www.engadget.com/2015/10/15/yahoo-mail-update/" target="_blank">Yahoo! is doing away with passwords</a> for Yahoo Mail. Instead, they'll be using a feature called Account Key that will tie your email address to your smartphone. <i>Don't have a smartphone? You're out of luck. In every way</i>.</li>
<li>If you don't have a smartphone, odds are you have a face. Facial recognition is another valid form of identification, and MasterCard says that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.sg/selfies-will-kill-off-passwords-within-five-years-says-mastercard-2015-10/?platform=bi-androidapp#.ViRT1_mrTb2" target="_blank">within five years, selfies will kill off passwords</a>. <i>Great. Now can someone invent something that will kill off selfies?</i> </li>
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<b>* Answer to the trivia question above: </b></h3>
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<li>Pakistani entrepreneurs introduced Uber for <a href="http://tribune.com.pk/story/973988/pakistani-entrepreneurs-launch-uber-for-rickshaws/" target="_blank">rickshaws</a>. <i>I can only imagine <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBSgpHQO-J4" target="_blank">the planning that went into this</a>. </i></li>
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<b>When You Have the Time: Essential Watching / Listening / Reading</b> </h4>
<ul>
<li>Phones are an essential part of our everyday lives. But how much is too much?</li>
<ul>
<li>If you have teenagers, you might want to share this with them. Compulsive texting might be indicative of (or causing) other issues such as <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/12/compulsive-texting-takes-toll-on-teenagers/" target="_blank">lower grades, memory issues, anxiety, and general attention issues</a>.</li>
<li>And if they don't care to listen to you about their grades, perhaps they'd like to take a look at <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3274835/Shocking-X-rays-teenagers-text-neck.html" target="_blank">the effect of too much screen time on their posture</a> — known as "text neck."</li>
<li>One photographer <a href="http://qz.com/523746/a-photographer-edits-out-our-smartphones-to-show-our-strange-and-lonely-new-world/" target="_blank">edited smartphones out of these photos</a>. The effect of shared solitude is eerie.</li>
</ul>
<li>Industrial giant GE has evolved into a digital powerhouse. In <a href="http://www.mckinsey.com/Insights/Organization/GEs_Jeff_Immelt_on_digitizing_in_the_industrial_space?cid=ceointerview-eml-alt-mip-mck-oth-1510" target="_blank">this interview with CEO Jeff Immelt</a>, he explains how GE has considered its digital future.</li>
<li>If you're traveling for any reason, you might want to check out the <a href="http://www.westinooogenerator.com/" target="_blank">Westin Out of Office Generator</a>.</li>
<li>The <a href="http://branddrivendigital.com/socialbrand2015/" target="_blank">Social Brand Forum</a> in Iowa City, IA wrapped up on Friday, and it had some top-notch speakers, including <a href="http://www.twistimage.com/blog/" target="_blank">Mitch Joel</a>, <a href="http://www.brasstackthinking.com/" target="_blank">Amber Naslund</a>, <a href="http://brandsavant.com/" target="_blank">Tom Webster</a>, <a href="http://businessesgrow.com/" target="_blank">Mark Schaefer</a>, <a href="http://www.justinej.com/" target="_blank">Justine Jordan</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/pistachio" target="_blank">Laura Fitton</a>, <a href="http://www.timwasher.com/" target="_blank">Tim Washer</a> and <a href="http://tamsenwebster.com/" target="_blank">Tamsen Webster</a>. Orchestrated under the capable and enthusiastic leadership of <a href="http://www.nickwestergaard.com/" target="_blank">Nick Westergaard</a>, many of the talks centered around to the very fundamentals of marketing and communications that we may have lost sight of, thanks to the wonders of technology. And <a href="https://twitter.com/sethmsparks" target="_blank">Seth Sparks</a> provided <a href="https://youtu.be/_nop68RrbjY" target="_blank">this fine wrap up video</a>:</li>
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The Week in Digital - October 19, 2015

The triumph of a whistleblower, getting dangerously close to Orwell's vision, Playboy strips out the photos, open unhappiness at ...

The Week in Digital - October 12, 2015

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It's Jack's Moment at Twitter, if you thought Peeple was bad, wait until you see Sniply, Microsoft ascendant, imagining the future when a tech giant fails, Pew Research's social media usage report, Facebook and television, the hot program for tech entrepreneurs, native ads may fall victim to ad blocking, Amazon helps out with security and compliance gaps, 15 tools to help you get more done each day, our weekly trivia challenge, the podcast of the week  and more, it's <b>The Week in Digital</b>.<br />
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A roundup of relevant links affecting our industry.<br />
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Each Monday we publish a newsletter that includes a series of links about current events and trends in the worlds of technology, business, digital communications and marketing in order to keep leaders up to date on changes, newsworthy items and content that might be useful in your job. A new issue is available every Monday morning. <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/subscribe.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Please subscribe</a> to keep up to date on developments.<br />
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<b>Industry</b></h4>
<ul>
<li>Last week we shared the folly of Peeple, the purported app that lets you rate other people. This week, we have <a href="http://www.businessesgrow.com/2015/10/05/sniply/" target="_blank">Sniply, a company that will allow anyone to overlay an ad on your site</a>. While the creators of the technology claim that it "can be used ethically or unethically," they're doing nothing to stop the code from being used in a nefarious way. Be sure to check out the entire article and the comments on this one. <i>With some of the recent breaches of trust, we have to wonder whether or not technology is getting the better of our ethical judgment</i>.</li>
<ul>
<li>Have we really reached <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/2015/10/dredging-bottom-of-internet.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">rock bottom</a>?</li>
</ul>
<li>If you want to get up close and personal with your customers, going beyond surface-level "loyalty," you'll want to read <a href="https://www.bulldogreporter.com/beyond-brand-loyalty-intimate-brands-have-personal-relationships-with-consumers-and-outperform-others-in-every-way/?utm_campaign=BDR+US+-+Daily+Dog&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=22743815&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--Mk0pQ152sRg8XfKoX5FtWIlwPtI3WK71S4tbV8i8lCzOkNYHamS2mUKbq4AWPKQb_OraWdOwXx9joz7EsVC9Te8G-zA&_hsmi=22743815" target="_blank">the 2015 Brand Intimacy report</a>. Brands that create an emotional attachment with their customers have an average of five percent more revenue growth and 11 percent profit growth over the S&P 500.</li>
<li>Take a look at the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-powerful-us-companies-on-social-media-2015-10" target="_blank">25 most powerful U.S. brands on social media</a>. <i>You might find a surprise or two in there</i>.</li>
<li><a href="http://blogs.windows.com/devices/2015/10/06/a-new-era-of-windows-10-devices-from-microsoft/" target="_blank">Microsoft held an event</a> in which they announced the latest Surface Book, Surface Pro, Lumia Phones, a fitness band <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/6/9460935/microsoft-event-windows-10-device-announcements" target="_blank">and other significant innovations that put Microsoft closer than ever</a> to being considered along side Apple, Facebook, Google and others. <i>Windows 10 is impressive and its mobile integration is an important step to making it widely accepted</i>.</li>
<li>Strategy and tactics are not the same thing. And yet, we often see marketers rush headlong into platforms, with an inconsistent approach due to a lack of vision. Or, as Lee Odden puts it, part of the problem is that "<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/marketing-strategy-vs-tactics-knowing-difference-costing-lee-odden?trk=hp-feed-article-title-publish" target="_blank">many marketers are tourists in the digital world</a>."</li>
<li>We all love the idea of content on demand; who has space for all those DVDs and CDs any more, right? Well, if you're buying <i>access</i> to media through the cloud, <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/10/when-amazon-dies/409387/" target="_blank">what happens when an access-granting tech giant fails</a>?</li>
<li>Pew Research now pegs 65% of adults as social media users, a nearly tenfold increase over a decade. Young adults continue to be the power users at 90%, while seniors over 65 have risen from just 2% in 2005 to 35% in 2015. For more details and breakouts see the Pew Research report <a href="http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/" target="_blank">Social Media Usage: 2005-2015</a>.</li>
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<b>Trivia question: Facebook hinted at a "dislike" button, but instead came out with how many different empathetic emojis in its Reactions feature?*</b></h3>
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<li><b>Twitter</b></li>
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<li>It was a big week at Twitter, as <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/jack-dorsey-ceo-of-twitter-2015-8?op=1" target="_blank">Jack Dorsey was officially confirmed as CEO</a>. He'll be splitting his time between Twitter and payment system Square, of which he is also CEO.</li>
<li>Dorsey isn't alone, as Twitter's general counsel Vijaya Gadde <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/05/twitter-general-counsel-vijaya-gadde-also-pulls-double-duty-named-permanent-comms-head/" target="_blank">is pulling double duty as director of communications as well</a>. Twitter sales chief Adam Bain was confirmed as COO.</li>
<li>Reports indicate that <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/09/twitter-is-planning-company-wide-layoffs-for-next-week/" target="_blank">Twitter will be making company-wide layoffs</a> this week. <i>It's a good thing Gadde has two jobs, as she can afford to be laid off from one of them if the company requires it</i>.</li>
<li>The layoffs shouldn't be a surprise to those who follow the real estate market, where <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/real-estate/2015/10/twitter-twtr-hpp-market-street-expansion-scrapped.html?page=all" target="_blank">Twitter has cancelled its San Francisco office expansion plans</a>.</li>
<li>Twitter's big product news was <a href="https://blog.twitter.com/2015/moments-the-best-of-twitter-in-an-instant-0" target="_blank">the introduction of Moments</a>, one of <a href="http://thenextweb.com/twitter/2015/10/06/twitter-just-made-the-biggest-change-to-the-service-since-its-invention-moments/" target="_blank">the biggest changes to the service</a> since its founding. It's designed to make news and stories more applicable and accessible to users — particularly those who have been turned off by Twitter in the past. <i>How Twitter plans to lure these people back is unclear</i>.</li>
<li>The opinions about Moments are divided, from those who think <a href="https://stratechery.com/2015/twitters-moment/" target="_blank">this will be a major turning point for Twitter</a> because of its dominance with news, and those who think that <a href="http://withoutbullshit.com/blog/twitter-moments-reduce-social-media-to-a-dusty-museum-display/" target="_blank">Twitter is relegating social media to the dustbin of history</a>. <i>Time will tell, but it's clear that this is the scope of product overhaul that's needed to satisfy casual users and Wall Street</i>.</li>
<li>There's <a href="http://recode.net/2015/10/08/twitters-video-ad-strategy-now-looks-like-youtubes-ad-strategy/" target="_blank">a new video ad strategy at Twitter</a>, and it's remarkably similar to what we've seen at YouTube. <i>"You know what this social network needs? More pre-roll video ads." — No user ever</i>. </li>
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<li><b>Facebook</b></li>
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<li>Facebook Audience Network — the ecosystem for advertiser-developers — now has a measurement standard: the <a href="http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/facebook-audience-network-advertiser-outcome-score/627839" target="_blank">advertiser outcome score</a>. <i>This is an important development, as measuring likes, comments and shares is a limited metric, while measuring post-click ad performance is more useful</i>.</li>
<li>Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/07/the-next-next-platform/#.fvmhl3:VEJr" target="_blank">the company is working on augmented reality</a> (<i>which we knew from its purchase of VR company Oculus</i>). As opposed to VR, AR is meant to keep a user connected with the world around them.</li>
<li>USA Today used the newly unveiled <a href="http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/usa-today-used-facebooks-new-emojis-its-front-page-stories-and-its-awkward-167490" target="_blank">Facebook emojis on its front page stories</a>, and it was...awkward.</li>
<li>Facebook unveiled <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/06/facebook-unveils-new-arsenal-of-second-screen-tools-for-broadcasters/#.fvmhl3:YE0w" target="_blank">a series of tools for second-screen TV watching</a> for broadcasters, including app voting and polling, viewer photo and video submission, and custom icons for shows. <i>Facebook is clearly trying to horn in on Twitter's domination of real-time viewing</i>.</li>
<li>Good timing too, as Nielsen research shows that <a href="http://adage.com/article/ad-age-research/facebook-top-tv-reaching-millennials-hispanics/300811/" target="_blank">Facebook is reaching more Millennials and Hispanics than television</a>.</li>
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<li><b>Google</b></li>
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<li>Google might be rotting your brain. Kaspersky Labs found that up to 40% of people trying to remember information <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3263670/Is-Google-rotting-BRAIN-adults-search-answers-without-trying-remember-25-immediately-forget-ve-out.html" target="_blank">immediately refer to Google</a> and don't try to think of it themselves. And 25% forget it immediately after looking it up. <i>What was the first part again?</i></li>
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<li>Instagram is five years old. The most surprising part about Instagram is that <a href="http://www.fastcodesign.com/3051606/5-years-later-the-most-surprising-part-about-instagram-is-that-no-ones-ruined-it?partner=rss" target="_blank">no one has ruined it yet</a>. <i>The real secret was keeping marketers at bay for so long and working with them closely to ensure they appreciate and mimic the style that Instagrammers have come to love</i>.</li>
<li><a href="https://contently.com/strategist/2015/10/06/reddit-takes-on-gawker-buzzfeed-with-upvoted/?goal=0_bc3967cef4-dd5b827702-315721201" target="_blank">Reddit unveiled Upvoted</a>, a shot across the bow at Gawker and Buzzfeed. The news site has interesting content surfaced from Reddit itself, but it's a little different from the main site: <a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/10/no-comments-allowed-reddits-new-news-site-upvoted/" target="_blank">no comments are allowed</a>. <i>For some who have been the victim of the hostile environment of Reddit's comments, this might be a marked improvement</i>.</li>
<li>Medium founder Ev Williams noted that they're <a href="https://medium.com/the-story/taking-medium-to-the-next-level-cb7f223fad86" target="_blank">taking Medium to the next level</a>, with <a href="https://medium.com/about/about-medium-9eac453da935" target="_blank">easier writing and editing capabilities</a>, a <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3052046/elasticity/medium-doubles-down-on-mobile-with-new-app-and-commenting-sharing-tools?campaign_date" target="_blank">focus on mobile</a> and a renewed commitment to making Medium more of a network than a writing platform, where people can connect over emotionally-charged writing. <i>A nice tie-in to the Brand Intimacy Report above</i>.</li>
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<b>Collaborative Economy</b> </h4>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://skift.com/2015/10/09/airbnb-ceo-visits-stephen-colberts-show-to-talk-disruption-and-communism/" target="_blank">Airbnb's CEO Brian Chesky appeared on <i>The Late Show with Stephen Colbert</i></a> to discuss the aspects of the business, including its foray into communist Cuba. <i>We're increasingly seeing Colbert's program play host to techpreneurs, as Uber CEO Travis Kalanick was on the show two weeks ago. This is becoming a cultural zeitgeist for brands</i>.</li>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Related: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-socialist-case-for-uber-2015-10" target="_blank">making the socialist case for Uber</a>. </li>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/259799/study-says-uber-putting-the-brakes-on-new-car-sale.html" target="_blank">Uber is having a negative impact on car sales</a>. In a survey, Frank N. Magid Associates found that Uber use rose from 5% to 18% in one year and 22% of those users indicate they're putting off buying a car because of it. <i>The good news is that Uber still needs cars</i>. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Presidential candidate Senator <a href="http://www.1776.vc/insights/senator-marco-rubio-on-demand-economy/" target="_blank">Marco Rubio is in full support of the on-demand economy</a>, citing the transformation of the American economy at the same time as the stagnation of government. </li>
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</span></b><b>Must-attend workshop — Money Matters for Agency Owners</b></h2>
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<span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="http://agencymanagementinstitute.com/advertising-agency-training/owner-workshops/financial-firepower/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="108" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8oc0UTzoaV4/VhH0TQgYzUI/AAAAAAAAiqw/PGV3k6xHC5A/s640/Money%2BMatters%2Bworkshop.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>December 8 - 9 in Orlando</b>. Explore best practices of how agencies are making and keeping more money from an industry expert who works with 250+ privately owned small to mid-sized agencies every year. Learn how to tell at a glance if you’re making money, if you’re staffed properly and how to keep more of what you earn.</span></div>
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"The conversation about taxes alone was worth the workshop fee. I went home and ran our numbers through your financial dashboard and couldn’t believe my eyes. Thank you!"</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://agencymanagementinstitute.com/advertising-agency-training/owner-workshops/financial-firepower/" target="_blank">Register today</a> for your chance to fine-tune your business.</span></div>
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<b>Audio</b></h4>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Have you stopped to consider <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/7/9455159/skype-sound-design-computer-audio-branding-longform" target="_blank">the importance of audio branding</a>? Whether you're producing content or a product, the music, sounds and signals all have an impact as to how it's perceived.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.cnet.com/products/chromecast-audio/" target="_blank">Chromecast's audio streaming is one of the highlights</a> of Google's latest version of the device. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">New feature: our <b>Podcast Recommendation of the Week</b>. This week, we suggest checking out <a href="http://www.businessesgrow.com/podcast-the-marketing-companion-2/" target="_blank">The Marketing Companion</a> with Mark Schaefer and Tom Webster. The two have a great rapport and are so insightful when it comes to marketing. Give them a listen and subscribe. <i>Do you have a podcast recommendation for us? Add yours to our Google Sheet: <a href="http://smonty.co/yourpodcasts">smonty.co/yourpodcasts</a></i></li>
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<b>Content</b></h4>
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<li>Native advertising has been all the rage lately (even though its ancestor advertorial is virtually the same thing). However, what's new is this: <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/publishers-worry-that-native-ads-are-vulnerable-to-ad-blocking-1444039200" target="_blank">native ads may be susceptible to ad blocking</a> when they're served across many sites via ad technology. <i>This should send a chill down the spine of every marketer. And it should give us pause to consider whether doing everything "at scale" makes sense</i>.</li>
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<span style="text-align: start;">What if you could put together a plan, a strategy, and a budget rooted in reality that gave you the resources you need to succeed? In less than one hour, you can build a data-driven customer journey and <a href="https://gumroad.com/a/356398195" target="_blank">emerge with an actionable plan to prepare you for 2016</a>.</span></h3>
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<span style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://gumroad.com/a/356398195" target="_blank"><img alt="data-driven customer journey and marketing planning framework" border="0" height="272" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zlNl7Ke8gTo/VhGjbqV4EwI/AAAAAAAAiqE/5uNTPFWh4XA/s400/Marketing%2BPlanning%2BFramework.PNG" title="2016 marketing planning framework" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclosure: affiliate link</span></i></div>
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<b>Metrics / Measurement / Data</b></h4>
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<li>Storytelling with data means <a href="http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/storytelling-with-data-simplify-focus-visualize-outcomes/" target="_blank">visualizing simply, yet focusing relentlessly</a>. Included in this hefty post are 10 lessons to help you get better at gleaning insights from reams of data. </li>
<li>A fascinating look at <a href="http://qz.com/506376/lobsters-2/" target="_blank">the data behind a recent Main lobster boom</a>.</li>
<li>If you've wondered about the frequency of posting online and company size, <a href="http://heidicohen.com/2015-social-media-benchmark/?mc_cid=ba4a057a78&mc_eid=6b50f1b70a" target="_blank">here are some stats to help you benchmark</a>.</li>
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<b>Privacy / Security / Legal</b><br />
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<li> If you're an iOS user and you're in China, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/12/technology/apple-is-said-to-deactivate-its-news-app-in-china.html?_r=0" target="_blank">good luck getting Apple News</a>. That's because Apple has disabled the feed, likely to avoid getting its content censored by the Chinese government.</li>
<li>LogMeIn acquired LastPass, <a href="http://thenextweb.com/insider/2015/10/09/logmein-just-acquired-lastpass-to-build-one-password-platform-to-rule-them-all/" target="_blank">to help address the rise of the Bring Your Own App (BYOA) trend</a>, which sees companies increasingly adopting employee-introduced applications as opposed to those recommended by IT administrators.</li>
<li>Amazon launched <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2015/10/07/amazon-launches-inspector-a-tool-that-automatically-finds-security-compliance-issues/" target="_blank">Inspector, a tool that automatically finds compliance and security issues</a>.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DRv2M1uR4IY/Vhs2LycZXdI/AAAAAAAAiuI/BlgHv48D43I/s1600/Inspector%2BGadget.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DRv2M1uR4IY/Vhs2LycZXdI/AAAAAAAAiuI/BlgHv48D43I/s640/Inspector%2BGadget.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image credit: <a href="https://flic.kr/p/8YtF15" target="_blank">JD Hancock (Flickr)</a></td></tr>
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<b>* Answer to the trivia question above: </b></h3>
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<li>Facebook unveiled <a href="http://techcrunch.com/2015/10/08/with-reactions-facebook-supercharges-the-like-button-with-6-empathetic-emoji/#.fvmhl3:TY39" target="_blank">six empathetic emojis in its Reactions </a>feature that will be piloted in Spain and Ireland. In addition to Like, you'll be able to express Love, Haha, Yay, Wow, Sad and Angry. <i>If they had one, we'd have clicked the Meh button on this news</i>.</li>
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<b>When You Have the Time: Essential Watching / Listening / Reading</b> </h4>
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<li>You're busy (that's why you're reading this curated newsletter rather than searching for the content yourself). Here are <a href="http://www.forbes.com/pictures/gfmj45eijk/15-tools-to-help-you-get/" target="_blank">15 tools to help you get more done</a> each day.</li>
<li>Scientists have discovered that social networks do a great job of making something seem common when in fact it isn't. It's <a href="http://www.technologyreview.com/view/538866/the-social-network-illusion-that-tricks-your-mind/" target="_blank">the majority illusion</a>. <i>Bottom line: don't believe everything you read</i>.</li>
<li>Even though it's titled "<a href="http://www.gq.com/story/fashion-generation-tips-national-magazine-award" target="_blank">My Father's Fashion Tips</a>," it's for everyone. Tom Junod's award-winning piece is more about overall style and a son's relationship with his father, and is an exemplar of good writing.</li>
<li>Just for fun: <a href="https://medium.com/just-admit-it/you-already-ruined-hanukkah-d913877e8a87" target="_blank">Part 6 of Dave Pell's Just Admit It</a>. We'll give you a flavor: </li>
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"You already bought that new watch. The watch ads can’t figure that out so they keep following you around the Internet for a few more weeks. But I’m sure that self-driving car is totally safe."</blockquote>
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Did you enjoy what you read this week? If so, please consider <a href="http://patreon.com/scottmonty" target="_blank">becoming a patron</a>, which means you can pledge as little as $1 a month — or any amount you wish — to help support this newsletter by <a href="https://www.patreon.com/scottmonty?ty=h" target="_blank">going to Patreon</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://smonty.co/announcemt" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I advise agencies and brands to help them improve their corporate and digital acumen</a>. Please <a href="http://www.scottmonty.com/p/contact.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">get in touch</a> if you'd like to put my experience and digital smarts to work on a project, to consult with your group, or to address an audience at your next corporate or industry event.</div>
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<i>Top image credit: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Villainc.svg#/media/File:Villainc.svg" target="_blank">"Villainc" by J.J. at the English language Wikipedia</a>. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons</i><br />
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