The Curator News Feed: March 29, 2013
This week we learned about Makankosappo and caught up on the latest social media news, including Facebook’s new cover photo restrictions, some of the worst QR code fails and tic-tac-toe with Oreo and Kit Kat on Twitter. Check it all out in this week’s Curator News Feed:
Makankosappo, Dany Choo. For those of you that have grown tired of last month's harlem shake silliness – I introduce Makankosappo! – Shawn
Torne, Flickr. In the coming weeks, we’re launching a mobile marketing experience on behalf of Vayama, an online travel agency focused on international travel. Over the next 4 months, the Vayama Truck will cover 6,000+ miles, inspiring people to think of where they’d like to travel, then go out there and see more of the world. As part of the experience, we’ve designed an interactive trivia game show that blends time lapsed video and stunning photography with eye-opening questions about interesting destinations around the world. Perhaps the most practical aspect of this experience is a passport photo booth. Did you know less than 50% of Americans have one? With photos in hand, people will leave the Vayama Truck one step closer to making their dream trip a reality. As we prepared for the tour, we’ve done quite a bit of dreaming of international destinations ourselves. It’s amazing to see the world through the lens of others’ generosity on social media. Here is one of my favorite set of photos of Tokyo from Flickr user _torne. – Ann Marie
Facebook Reduces Cover Image Restrictions, V3 Integrated Marketing. If you've been frustrated by how difficult Facebook's cover image rules make it to promote your brand and content, you'll like this: Pricing information, contact info, references to Facebook actions (like, share, etc.) and calls to action are all now OK, per an update from last week. Still standing is the "20 percent rule," which limits how much text can be contained in a cover image or promoted photo. If you need any help visualizing what 20 percent of an image looks like, ShortStack's got you covered with this handy infographic. – Paul
Oreo and Kit Kat Play Tic-Tac-Toe on Twitter, Creativity-Online. It’s always interesting to see large brands interact with each other on social media, but it’s even more entertaining to see them battle for a fan’s affections via a game of tic-tac-toe on Twitter. Check out this article for a fun overview of the latest Twitter battle of the brands. I absolutely love how Kit-Kat and Oreo take the opportunity to illustrate their individual personalities, and the resulting buzz clearly shows that their fans appreciate it as well! – Megan
Why Public Relations Gets No Respect, Fortune. Interesting take on the PR industry. While I disagree with some of the ways he characterizes PR’s bad rap, I do agree that PR is moving center stage today and that social and human interactions, along with content creation and using data to drive decisions, are a big part of it. – Dan
Amazon Acquires Social Reading Site Goodreads, TechCrunch. How many times in the last month did a friend on social media ask for a book recommendation? For me, it happens a lot and I'm guilty of the action myself. If you're a reader then this new Amazon acquisition is right up your alley. – Brooke
Turning Passbook into an DIY marketing tool, TechCrunch. I still have yet to get much use out of Apple’s Passbook, but it seems the swell of startups developing tools for this platform will soon change that. Fosbury, for example, has developed a DIY platform that allows users to design, distribute, manage and even analyze Passbook campaigns. It seems simple, but the implications for marketers are huge. Check out the article to see what I mean. – Matthew
Worst QR Code Fails of All Time 2013, Business Insider. Talk about an “oops!” moment. Goes to show how a good idea is nothing without a carefully thought out plan of action! – Chelsey
Get Outta Town: 3 Quick Ideas for your Weekend, Seattle Times. I was inspired by all this sun to look out for outdoorsy things to do this weekend besides celebrating Easter. – Liz
You Should Really Think About Making Something with Avocados This Weekend, Food Republic. I'm heading down to Mexico with my family to spend an uninterrupted week together — eating, playing on a beach, swimming in the ocean, and then doing it all over again. Sounds wonderful. The place we're going has beach servers who make fresh guacamole right next to your lounge chair, under your umbrella, with the best avocados in the world. It's heavenly. When I saw this article in Food Republic today I had to share. Make something! – Scott