Toluu

Armchair Theorist

All conjecture, minimal substance

Using Rich Interactive User Experiences to Market your BrandJune 15

Note: This article was originally published on iMediaConnection.com.

More so than ever before, progressive companies today are exploring the use of experimental digital marketing to help them gain an edge over their competitors. Explore how organizations are leveraging technologies from companies like Microsoft and Adobe to build next-generation online experiences for innovative and experimental marketing.

There are many different kinds of experimental marketing techniques in the arsenal of a digital marketer today. However, I would like to focus on one particular kind of digital marketing tactic today, which is to leverage rich interactive user experiences to market your brand. This tactic can potentially not only increase customer loyalty, but also improve customer interaction as well as increase lead generation.

The idea is simple, although it’s easier said than done:

1. Build an online website, which may be a long-term micro site or an extension of one’s main company website.
2. The website is commonly promoted as a online reference or even a game, instead of a glorified online brochure.
3. Most importantly, this website must offer users an experience that is so cool, that they will have a reason to come back again and again, even though they may already be familiar with your company or product

unBrief Lessons from unConference 2009May 19

OK, I really have to stop using that silly “un-prefix” gimmick.

unConference 2009 came and went this past Saturday. Except for a few technical glitches early on, the event was very dynamic and well-run, which is expected for an e27 event.

Like I mentioned in my pre-coverage of the event, I was really stoked to go, and thankfully I wasn’t disappointed one bit.

After last year’s Unconference (notice the subtle difference in the capitalization? Ah… branding), I hunkered down and wrote a 1800 word essay on the event.

Well, this year I’m not going to do that, for a couple reasons:

• Firstly, I really don’t want to write 1800 words for any single

A Late Night unChat about the unConference 2009May 13

I had a great time at the unConference last year. I even blogged about it.

Naturally, I was really looking forward to this year’s unConference organized by e27. As I went ahead and visited the event website last week to register, I looked over the event details:

Same place…

Same time (almost)…

But many times the price… What? Ticket prices this year are three to six times more than last year’s prices?

Since the unConference last year and through various events since then, I have gotten to know Mohan Belani, e27’s young director, reasonably well. So I needed a straight answer from him – Wat up with da ticket prices this year?

So I messaged him over Windows Live Messenger a few nights ago, and we ended up chatting about a whole bunch of stuff – from startups to Southeast Asia to Microsoft to branding and even the science of managing expec

Opera’s Desperate PloyMay 10

Hey, let me share with you a few brilliant ideas I came up with recently!

1. Let’s propose to Google (72.39% search market share) the following – on the top of every search results page, instead of providing a link to only Gmail, Google should provide a link to Hotmail and Yahoo! Mail as well. While we are at it, let’s put links to Hulu and Veoh next to the link to Youtube.
2. Also, how ’bout if we ask Apple (~70% portable music player market share) to give users a direct link within iTunes (or maybe even from within the iPod itself) to buy music from the Zune Marketpace and Rhapsody?
3. Or maybe we should request Adobe – who’s Acrobat Reader is found on virtually every PC today – to forcibly install Silverlight and the .NET runtime during the Acrobat Reader installation process just like it forcibly installs Adobe AIR?

And the reason for these proposals?

Because if we don’t do it, consumers will be hurt since they won’t have “choice”.

Because if we don’t do it, consumers will be absolutely incapable of downloading and installin

Canon, P.I. – Microsoft Tries Viral AgainMay 7

Historically, when Microsoft tries to do creative or viral commercials and promotional videos, it has been met with mixed results.

Some folks love it that Microsoft is stepping out of its comfort zone and trying new things. Other folks hate it just because they bare an illogical hate for anything Microsoft. Most folks are somewhere in the middle.

Whatever, I love the fact the Microsoft is doing viral stuff.

Yes, I do work for Microsoft, but I’m speaking objectively – I just love viral videos and creative marketing campaigns, period. I love it when big boring corporations flaunt their creative muscle and don’t mind making fun of themselves once in a while.

Anyway, here is Microsoft’s latest viral video – the first part of a series of episodes promoting Microsoft’s Web Platform. Check it out!

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you ever spent any time watching Magnum, P.I. before, don’t you love this parody?