Message From Michael 
February 2, 2011
SUPERCALAFRAGILISTIC BOWL
SUPER BOWL SEX
SUPER SOCIAL BOWL
NEWS MEDIA SUPER BOWL
COCKTAIL CHATTER – KIDS DO THE DARNDEST THINGS
FACTOID OF THE WEEK – FARMING CONTENT IN
SUPERCALAFRAGILISTIC BOWL: This year’s Super Bowl may be the most viewed game of all time, according to several projections. And considering that the Super Bowl games have claimed the top spots in television history… And that last year’s Super Bowl game was the most watched TV program in
SUPER BOWL SEX: All right, I admit it. I just picked that headline for all the wrong reasons. All sexism aside, four out of five men (89%) will watch the game. But, hey, two out of three women (69%) will watch as well, according to Nielsen Media. It’s because the game has rapidly turned from a sports event to a combination sports and social event. A personal observation here – The Kentucky Derby is considered THE ultimate sporting and social event combination. But the Super Bowl appears headed to that same level of interest. According to the statistics from Nielsen, although the male to female audience is two to one, in the past five years there has been a gradual creeping up of the female audience, by about a percentage point in just the last year (32.55% to 33.59%), and a concomitant drop in the male audience of one percent (67.44% to 66.41%). But here’s the factoid you’ll love. The Hollywood Reporter magazine says the Penn Schoen Berland survey shows that the American male gets more excited about the Super Bowl than any other day in the year… except for maybe Christmas. But definitely ahead of Thanksgiving, birthdays and anniversaries.
SUPER SOCIAL BOWL: As usual, the advertisements are expected to draw almost as much interest as the game itself, and, as usual, the spots are expensive, with ads this year running from $2.8 Million to $3 Million a spot. As usual, some ads were turned down which, some speculate, is intentional on the part of the advertisers because it garners attention without the hefty price tag. In fact, the Bible of the Business, Advertising Age refuses to report on such commercials because it is such an obvious trick by advertisers who don’t have the money. For example, the PETA ad showing bikini-clad women “doing things” (sorry, that’s the best way I can put it) with vegetables has been rejected… Again. Forbes reports that Fox has turned down two ads – from AshleyMadison.com, a website for married people who want to find sex partners, and JesushatesObama.com, a conservative satirical site selling novelty items. Also, as usual, some of the ads have already appeared online, at least in part, to build anticipation and to get more “bang for their buck.” But the difference this year, as noted by several media publications, is the use of, and emphasis on, social media.
Hard to believe but until now, only one advertiser, E-Trade, even mentioned Facebook or Twitter in their ad, according to a study by a marketing professor and his students at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire and reported by Advertising Age. This year, advertisers ranging from the venerable and perennial Budweiser to major car makers like Audi, Volkswagen, and Mercedes Benz along with more obscure companies like Home Away, a vacation rental company will make use of social media. Mercedes has launched a “tweet race.” Home Away has created a fictional “ministry of detourism.” The point, of course, again, to get “more bang for the buck.” For good reason. Advertising Age noted another study which shows 18 to 34 year olds – two thirds of whom are packing a Smartphone -- will be making heavy use of social media during the game. The study by Lightspeed Research shows that more than half (59%) expect to send emails or text messages about the game; A fifth (18%) will either check out ads online or advertiser websites; And a third (32%) will post comments on a social networking site.
THE NEWS MEDIA SUPER BOWL
COCKTAIL CHATTER: As an addendum to the Super Bowl social media notes, men are more likely to use social media sites to find information while women are more likely to use the sites to find coupons and promotions. A company called Empathica which bills itself as a retail marketing consultancy said both genders use social media for comparison shopping, but just in different ways. The article in Chief Marketer, citing the study, quotes the head of Empathica as saying that’s because women are more “intentional and thoughtful shoppers.” However, the study noted that men are more likely (4%) to complain than women (2%). Another gender difference study, this one by a research firm called Play Science Lab, says girls are more likely to socialize while playing digital games while boys are more likely to be focused on the game itself. The study which focused on ages six to 14 says boys also like to socialize while gaming and girls also like the gaming, but that the level of interest is significantly different.
And as long as we’re talking about kids, and in the category of hard-to-believe, a new study says two year olds are more likely to be able to operate a Smartphone than tie their own shoes. According to the survey of parents of children between the ages of two and five in ten countries by security firm AVG, a fifth of the kids could operate a Smartphone application. More than half (58%) can play a computer game and a quarter can open a Web browser. By comparison, only one in ten (9%) of the two and year olds could tie their own shoelaces and only a fifth (20%) could swim without help. Interestingly, the survey found some cultural differences in the various countries. For example, Italian kids are more likely (44%) to be able to place a mobile phone call than American kids (25%).
FACTOIDS OF THE WEEK: The poster child of “content farms”, Demand Media, is worth more than The New York Times. According to an analysis of its IPO (Initial Public Offering), Demand Media’s stock has a market capitalization of $1.9 Billion. By way of comparison, The New York Times capitalization based on stock price is $1.56 Billion. And here’s the ironic twist, as noted by Online Publishers Association, The New York Times had originally considered buying Demand Media. Somewhere between factoid and cocktail chatter -- the somewhat controversial and, some would say, taste-challenged MTV show, Jersey Shore, scored the top two spots as the most watched shows on cable, with 6.2 Million and 5.1 Million viewers each. To compound the situation, streaming episodes of the show set online records for MTV with 1.6 Million unique views and 15 Million streams in a single week.
WORTH NOTING: You now have a choice of two websites that provide a different perspective on the news. The English language version of Al Jazeera is now available live online through Live Stream. Watch it for coverage of the crisis in
SUBSCRIPTIONS: We encourage people to pass on copies of Message from Michael. But if you would like to get your own copy, you can subscribe by sending an e-mail to Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “subscribe-MM” in the subject line. If you wish to stop receiving this newsletter, e-mail Michael@MediaConsultant.tv with the word “unsubscribe-MM” in the subject line. Also, back issues of MfM are available at the website, media-consultant.blogspot.com. You can reach me directly at Michael@MediaConsultant.tv.
No comments:
Post a Comment