Nothing Happens Without Awareness

Happy 70th birthday to the Ad Council.

The Ad Council is the advertising industry’s premier non-profit, founded in 1942 at the urging of President Franklin Roosevelt, to leverage the persuasive power of media for the sake of the common good. Those early years saw memorable campaigns on behalf of the war effort, including the introduction of an icon that remains moving and powerful to this day: Rosie the Riveter.

Since then, the Council has championed causes that benefit us all, while remaining decidedly non-partisan and uncontroversial. These include Smokey the Bear’s fight against forest fires, McGruff the Crime Dog’s exhortations to “take a bite out of crime,” and the familiar, effective message: “Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.”

The Ad Council’s mission is made possible through the donated time and talents of the industry’s top creative minds, and more than $1 billion in free media space per year. We see the results every day on TV, online, in our magazines and in our newspapers. More importantly, we see the results in the positive social changes the Ad Council helps to bring.

The influence of modern advertising is a boon to business and commerce. We’re proud to be part of that. But we’re at least as proud of the role our industry plays in positive social messaging and change. So thank you, Ad Council, and here’s to your next 70 years of service.

The C4:

1. The Ad Council was founded in 1942 by advertising industry leaders, as part of the home-front war effort.
2. From 1942–1945 the Council helped sell war bonds, encouraged rationing, kept morale high and introduced Rosie the Riveter to the world.
3. Since the end of WWII, the Ad Council has leveraged top creative talent and billions of dollars in free media to promote some of the most important and most familiar social causes.
4. Nothing happens without awareness. Congrats to the Ad Council on its 70th anniversary.

Crazy? Yep!

You in?

Since 10% of the world’s population is already on Facebook, saying that Facebook is going public is a little like saying Charlie Sheen is going crazy.

But from a business perspective, it’s true (the Facebook part, that is — Sheen’s nuttiness, like Sheen himself, is irrelevant).

Facebook filed paperwork last week for an upcoming IPO. Analysts are predicting the largest tech-sector public offering of all time, maybe even the largest-ever stock launch, period.

We shall see. But what we’ve learned so far, from Facebook’s SEC filings, is in turn instructive, intriguing and even a little bewildering.

The facts: Facebook valuates itself at between $75 and $100 billion. They’re seeking a $5 billion cash infusion, with which they plan a series of strategic acquisitions. And current holders of Facebook stock options, including secretaries, custodians and the graffiti artist who painted their lobby, are about to become millionaires.

But that’s where things get weird.

Facebook stock options have always been a valuable recruiting tool, enticing the industry’s best programmers, designers and engineers. Facebook stock has long been privately traded, so the options have been paying off nicely until now.

But future options, after the IPO, will be seriously devalued, which will in turn hobble Facebook’s ability to bring in new talent. Is Facebook really risking that to raise just five percent of their (assumed) total net worth?

Doubtful. Especially considering that their revenue has grown by double digits every year of their existence. Last year it was a jaw-dropping 84%. This company is not cash-poor.

Something else is going on here, and we will delight in digging deep and discerning what it is. We’ll do so respectfully of course, because we know Mr. Zuckerberg is even now reading these words (Hi, Mark!).

The C4:

1. Facebook, a social media and advertising powerhouse unlike anything ever seen, has filed paperwork for a $5 billion IPO.
2. A successful stock launch will enrich hundreds of Facebook employees who have benefited from deferred options.
3. Future stock options may be diluted due to the millions of new shares about to be issued. This will surely impact Facebook's ability to attract new talent.
4. We're puzzled and intrigued, and watching closely to see who gets egg on their Facebook.

What You Should Know About Measuring Social Influence

It’s no doubt that Klout created a niche market for measuring social influence. But constant criticism regarding privacy issues and calculation methods also set the stage for a host of new competitors to step into the limelight and steal the attention of Klout’s audience.

In the above image from AdWeek, the sudden availability of many new influence measurement tools presents quite a selection of options to choose from when seeking to determine the reach of your social media activities.

Klout. Kred. PeerIndex. PROskore. SocMetrics. Traackr. TweetLevel. Twitalyzer.

Wait — we’re not done yet.

Argyle Social. CrowdBooster. Empire Avenue. My Web Career. PostRank. Sprout Social. TweetGrader. TweetStats. Twenty Feet. Twitaholic. Twitter Counter. Twylah. Who Say.

OK. Now that we have a good — but still incomplete — list going, which one is right for you?

Most of these platforms give some sort of score or idea of your reach. Some just let you compare yourself against other industry users. But each takes different bits of information into account when calculating. Past job titles. Audience size. Tweets, retweets, favorites, likes, tags, etc.

The list of criteria goes on.

But as organizations spread out over all these platforms and begin using their services, the facts and figures that come from each start to lose their importance. Does a Klout score of 54.8 (rounded up to 55) stand up against a Kred score of 548? This presents some problems for organizations that sell social media services, or for social media specialists that are required to provide metrics regarding the impact of their endeavors.

So, which influence measurement tool should you choose?

Any of them, really. Sure, some will come under fire for how they calculate social influence. They always will. Whether it’s from competition or social watchdogs, these tools will continue to be scrutinized. And they’ll continue to defend themselves because they have a product to sell.

But your role in this mayhem is to keep moving forward. Using Klout? Aim to improve your score. Engage more and share more. Using Kred? It’s the same situation — just keep building up your organization’s social presence.

And if anyone shuns your Kred score with their Klout score, just ask them what their scores or metrics are for each of the 21 influence measurement tools mentioned above. All 21 of them — one by one.

The C4:

• Many social influence measurement tools are available, and each offers scoring or measurement in either similar or vastly different ways.
• Choosing the right tool for you depends on how you're going to use it.
• You must determine the value of having a measurement tool — what does this information mean to you and what will it mean to those you serve?
• Comparing scores from different tools is pointless; instead, compare what you hear back from your audience. That will determine who's doing things right.

Image Source: http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/million-little-klouts-137032