If you happen to check out Lexus’ newest ad campaign, you might run  across a familiar face. Comedian, editor of The Onion, and Black Web 2.0 Tech Tastemaker, Baratunde Thurston is one of a handful of social media influencers tapped to participate in Toyota’s efforts to create a buzz for the company’s Lexus CT 200h. The hybrid compact is the latest offering from Toyota Motor Corp, and they’re anxious to get the tech-savvy social media audience behind the wheel.

“If we have people that are active in social media, then they can bring followers with them,” says Dave Nordstrom, Lexus’s vice president of marketing. (WSJ.com)

Called Darkcasting, the online video consists of actress and comedian Whitney Cummings interviewing the social media heavyweights as they take the 200h for a spin around their home town. Thurston put the car through its pace in New York City traffic. According to his blog, at one point he was forced to perform the NYC version of defensive driving and cut someone off.  While he tends to be “anti-car, especially in NYC, but pro-hybrid,” Thurston spoke positively of the way Lexus has handled the campaign:

“…rather than some invasive ad model taking over another publisher, Lexus did this themselves. I believe the world now refers to this as “branded entertainment.” These endeavors can go horribly wrong. After all, what does a luxury car company know about making a good talk show? But Lexus put together a good team, and Whitney was a riot.”

Other participants in the Darkcasting campaign include R&B singer Goapele, who tweeted, “I had a great time last night with @Djqbert @WhitneyCummings. Thanx to @keyinfluencer @VanHoven @lexus for a solid production. Go #Lexus1″, social media expert Brian Solis, and DJ Qbert. The next set of videos are taking place in Chicago, but no word yet on who’s on tap to take the CT for its test drive through Chi-town.

Gossip columnist Jeremy Helligar posted on his blog that singer  Justin Timberlake’s Facebook status read, “Will the Facebook movie make me more than just the next King of Pop?” Helligar used the opportunity to discuss Timberlake’s acting career. [I will ignore the "King of Pop" reference and apparently Timberlake decided to do the same; the update has since been deleted from his fan page. ] I saw it as Timberlake’s opportunity to market the movie he stars in as Sean Parker, former Facebook Inc. president.  Unless there is some change in Facebook’s advertising policies, The Social Network will not be buying any ads on the social network known as Facebook.

Kara Swisher of All Things Digital reports,

“Facebook’s advertising guidelines don’t allow ads to reference the company unless Facebook has cooperated with the object of the ad,” said Steve Elzer, SVP of Media Relations for Sony (SNE) movie unit Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, in response to a BoomTown query. “So, we won’t be advertising there given these parameters.”

The “parameters” prohibit advertising but they certainly aren’t prohibiting indirect marketing of the film by fans of the film and its stars. An “official” Facebook page for the movie is incomplete at this time but there are 16 other pages on the network that feature some aspect of the film from the first poster to the trailers.

Based on Ben Mezrich‘s 2009 book The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal, The Social Network has been called “fiction” by Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg. Recently, Facebook announced the release of an application, 500 Million Stories, to collect “friend” stories about their experiences on the network. They will most likely use those stories to counteract any potential damage caused by the film’s content and buzz though they’d hardly need to worry.

Switching gears briefly, The Social Network has the star power of Timberlake who is the subject of early Oscar nomination buzz for his performance. The smattering of, ahem, color is coming in the form Rashida Jones (Quincy’s daughter) who plays Marylin Delpy and some smaller roles. The IMDB entry for the movie shows Adina Porter portraying “Gretchen’s assistant.” Who is Gretchen and why doesn’t her assistant have a name?

Watch the TV spot for The Social Network. Don’t blink or you’ll miss Rashida Jones say something about 2200 hits. To be frank, David Fincher (the maker of the film) and Zuckerberg will be just fine after the release of the movie. In the scheme of things, they’ll both be paid without having to hold  hands.

Periodically, I check to see if I have new followers on Twitter, and was surprised to find out that Bessie Coleman,Matthew Henson and Benjamin Banneker were waiting for me to follow them back. Something about that was intriguing and after a closer inspection I learned that a toy manufacturer was also following me. H.I.A. or History in Action is the brainchild of D.C. lawyer Sterling Ashby, who developed the line of historical action figures in response to a dearth and to give parents and children a way to engage based on a simple question, “Who is this?”

After surveying Sterling’s H.I.A. site, I gave him a call. I most certainly had to ask, ‘Who developed your social media strategy?’ Humbly, Sterling told me that he didn’t outsource and that the idea to give each figure its own Twitter I.D. was his own. Sterling also admitted that time was a prohibitor in pursuing more social media to market his product. One of the timesavers he has employed is HootSuite and it is a smart option; however, there are other options that will not only complement his current efforts but maybe even translate to sales.

Mr. Ashby has begun a smart social media campaign. He got my attention and I’ve taken the steps he should anticipate from someone who follows the figures and his company.

Well, to make his campaign the smartest it can be until he has more time to devote to marketing, I’ve got a few suggestions based on my immediate impressions of his online presence.

The Action Figures on Twitter

• Give each figure their own voice. Separate their voices from the voice of the company. Bring them to life in 140 characters or less. Use HootSuite to schedule out quotes by each and factoids. Amplify their unique personalities via replies and even in some of the information they tweet out. For example, wouldn’t Bessie be amazed to learn of the team of black women pilots who fly for a commercial airliner? Benjamin Banneker can use Twitpic or other Twitter clients to tweet out photos of his work around D.C. And Matthew Henson can tweet out snippets of information about exploration.

The Company on Twitter

• Engage with your followers more. Ask questions, like black history trivia questions. Ask your followers to ask their followers to tell you which black history figures they’d like to see. And take about 30 minutes a week to use Twitter search to find the people who’d be the best buyers and influencers for your brand. In that 30 minutes, take a deep breath and choose a few of the people, then tweet them. Don’t wait for a conversation, create a conversation about black history or anciliary topics. Ask people to look at your product and ask them if they’d buy it or recommend it. If they say no, ask them why not.

The Facebook Fan Page

• The H.I.A. Facebook fan page had almost 1500 people who “like” or support it, which is nothing to sneeze at. You should post more photos of the product on the fan page, especially photos of each character from multiple angles. Create a video that shows someone, preferably a child, handling the action figures. What are their capabilities? Do they have bendable body parts? Talk about how and why you chose those figures. A real plus would be the addition of videos, if available, of the TV placements for H.I.A.
• Add the links to each Twitter account in the Info section. Put your contact number and email in the Info section too.
• Remove the tabs that have no content and add them again when there is content.
• Post articles, videos and photos that can be shared but also instruct. Create a feed that will automatically post your Facebook content on Twitter.

The Web site

• Add buttons that connect to Facebook and each of your Twitter accounts on the home page.
• Add a Twitter button on the individual bios of the action figures.
• If you offer teachers and parents the study guides, then offer the kids a downloadable picture they can color with crayons.
• Add more photos of the figures and if any of their memorbilia is available in a museum, add photos of those too.

H.I.A. Toys is hardly a social media violator, but if Sterling Ashby employs these quick and easy optimizers he could turn passive followers and friends into paying customers.

The world got its first glimpse of the new 2011 Ford Explorer through a video Ford posted on its Facebook page. I didn’t just say “a glimpse”, I said “FIRST glimpse” as cars as historic as the Ford Explorer are usually seen first at major auto shows. It seems as if Ford has recognized the power of social media and decided to get with the times, and utilized Facebook to spread the buzz about its iconic vehicle. Throughout the day, Ford will use its Explorer Facebook page to release relative news, and videos to the public.

Of course the Ford media folks will take to the streets and spread the word using the regular News and Media outlets (TV, radio, print, and other live demos), but since it has been reported that Facebook has just hit 500 million members, it makes sense as to why major companies like Ford are taking to sites like Facebook to increase their reach.

And let’s not forget how cost-effective it is to promote on the popular social media sites. All of the logistics, all of the collaboration, all of the planning, and all of the money it would take to launch a major unveiling such as the one Ford Explorer, at a major auto show versus putting together a good video and letting us [social media site subscribers, bloggers, and reporters] do all the heavy lifting. Let’s just say Ford is saving major dough by taking the latter route.

Look for more companies to start launching major advertising campaigns on social media sites for us to eat up, and pass along. Word of mouth has always been, and always will be free of charge.

EVERYWHERE, a Social Media Marketing and Content Development firm based in Atlanta, GA set a record October 16-17th for the most widespread social network message in 24 hours. According to Radian6, the official online monitoring company, the phrase #BeatCancer set the record with 209,771 mentions on Twitter, Facebook and blog posts. This translates into an estimated number of impressions generated during this 24-hour period at over 100 Million. Attendees at BlogWorld & New Media Expo, which featured some of the biggest names in social media, were asked to send tweets and issue Facebook status updates with #BeatCancer in their posts. This massive viral effort spawned a worldwide online message that spread and quickly became the #1 most trending topic on Twitter. Not content to just perpetuate a hashtag followed by a message, EVERYWHERE sought out sponsors to raise money for non-profit cancer organizations. Sponsors eBay/PayPal and MillerCoors Brewing Company and Genesis Today were financial contributors to the #BeatCancer campaign and in the brief 24 hour period, over $70,000 was raised.

Of the effort, Guinness World Record® spokesperson, Stuart Claxton said, “We’re always on the lookout for new and exciting ideas, and when approached about a mass social media experiment that rallied people to support the fight against cancer, we were happy to oblige in adjudicating this record attempt.” He further clarified that this attempt “will set a benchmark for social media monitoring moving forward.”

Managing Partner of EVERYWHERE, Tamara Knechtel, who came up with the idea for #BeatCancer says, “We understand very well the power brands have to deliver messages in the social media space. We wanted to score the first Guinness World Record® by using social media for social good. I’m a cancer survivor and just about everyone I know has a close family member who has suffered from the disease. That said, we only had a matter of days to pull this off in time for BlogWorld & New Media Expo. We are grateful to our sponsors, eBay/PayPal and MillerCoors who stepped up to the plate offering a penny per #BeatCancer mention. In the end, they both gave far more than a penny per mention!” EVERYWHERE is now the first social media agency to develop a Guinness World Record for online impressions.

The money raised will be donated to four different non-profit cancer organizations including SU2C (Stand UP to Cancer), Alex’s Lemonade, Bright Pink, and Spirit Jump. All of the non-profits are 501(c)(3) organizations and accredited by The American Cancer Society. A listing of all organizations can be found at www.beatcancereverywhere.com. While the campaign is over, individuals may still donate at the aforementioned website.

The measurement firm Radian 6 provided all of the real-time tracking for the campaign. As of this release the current impressions total over one million mentions of #BeatCancer including tweets sent by athletes and celebrities including P. Diddy, Jermaine Dupri, Larry Fitzgerald, MC Hammer, Perez Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Maxwell, Alicia Keys, Shawne Merriman, and Denise Richards.

Question: What do 360 gamers in Ohio, Florida, Iowa, Colorado, Indiana, Montana, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, and Wisconsin have in common if they are playing titles by Electronic Arts online?

Answer: In game advertisements bought by Barack Obama.

With the social networking groups on Obama’s site such as Black Gamers for Obama, is it any surprise. Further, back in September, there was a virtual election on XBOX Live and, as reported on Digital Spy UK, virtual voters backed Obama.

Now that the election is coming to ahead, and the candidates are focusing on battle ground states, this is an unprecedented move by Obama.  Now, I don’t think that this is as big as the first time a presidential candidate spoke on radio or appeared on TV in terms of milestones of the political process.  But when we look at the bigger picture, the use of the internet and web 2.0 technology, to me that includes online video games due to their social networking aspect, this is a huge move. It means that Obama has officially found a way to permeate every Social Media and Web 2.0 technology… and that is pretty damn cool. The results are evident as we see more and more young people and hard to reach demographics more engaged in the political process than we have in the past.

My prediction for the future of games and politics: if this proves to work well in terms of reaching potential voters and it is received well, the next time there is a big election there will even be candidate video games. Now what would those be?  Maybe online quiz games on policy?

Have you ever wanted to design a sneaker? Well now you can. RYZ is a community driven high-end sneaker company based in Portland, Oregon. RYZ’s business model relies solely on the internet for design, marketing, and sales of all or their sneakers, eliminating the need for expensive marketing and design staffs.

How it works.

RYZ lets you download the sneaker template and design everything from the inside and outside panels to the tongue, footbed, heel and outer sole. The designs are then posted online where designers may use social networks like MySpace and Facebook to build a buzz and create demand for sneakers. Viewers must then vote for their favorites design. The design with the highest amount of votes are produced by RYZ, and the designer will get $1,000 plus 1 percent royalties.

The retail price for the shoes are $90.00, and sizes range from 5-12.

RYZ founder Rob Langstaff, who used to head Adidas North America, says in a traditional footwear company, it might take 12 months — and a substantial investment — to get a new design to market.

“What we’ve done is compressed this time using the Internet,” Langstaff says. Design to final product: about 6 weeks.

Check out the Promo Video:

Source: NPR

On the verge of our country picking its next President of the United States, one candidate has truly taken advantage of how he uses the internet to spread his message of change.  Closely watching this revolutionary online movement is Barack20.com, a Web 2.0 marketing concept created by Social CRM Expert Brent Leary and Online Business Development Expert David Bullock. The concept was formed out of the positive reaction Leary received from his Black Enterprise article, Barack Obama’s Lesson in Social Media. Leary then joined forces with Bullock in producing a webinar of the same name. The webinar was not promoted to many but the response from those fortunate to catch it was significant.

Leary and Bullock propose that Barack Obama’s success with social media provides best practice strategies that can be employed by small businesses. Leary states:

“Our hope is to help small business people learn how social media can positively impact their efforts by taking a close look at how the Obama campaign used Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other tools to engage millions of people.” Hence Barack20.com is born.

Leary and Bullock have no affiliation with Barack Obama, or the Obama campaign. The webinar, and their transcript of the original conversation, focuses solely on how the Obama campaign used social media to engage people at the grassroots level in order to win millions of votes and break political fundraising records. Bullock states:

“The idea is simple: digging deeper and showing true to life examples on how to really use social media to connect, engage and develop meaningful business relationships that create profitable connections for the business owner. In the end, transactions don’t occur without relationships. Social media bridges that gap.”

One thing is for sure, Barack Obama has made history both politically and technologically in his bid to become the first African-American President of the United States. All Barack20.com wants to do is educate small businesses on this social media marketing concept and have them apply it to their own businesses. I for one look forward to Brent and David’s next webinar scheduled for August 19, 2008, and in the meantime I’m noting how I can apply and put Obama’s Web 2.0 marketing strategies to the test.

A little while ago I posted about Carol’s Daughter doing a live web chat @ HSN and how all of their efforts in social media is making shopping personal again, only from your computer v.s. and actual personal shopper.  Nordstrom is another example of a retailer being ahead of the curve.  This weekend while I was WWS (Web Window Shopping) I noticed that Nordstrom offers RSS Feeds a.k.a Fashion Feeds, it was the first time I had come across this though I’m not sure if this is a new feature or not, considering they have been blogging since late last year.  Their feeds consist of New Arrivals, Womens, Mens, Handbags, and a few others.  They also allow you to create your own feed based off an advanced search conducted on their site, go figure…it is integrated into the search results.  All feed items link directly to product pages and a user is literally one to two clicks away from completing and order. Sweet.  They also have a Twitter account which can be used to syndicate feeds via Twitterfeed; better yet they could take a que from the NYTimes, Google, and the many other companies using Twitter accounts as Channels for specific content.  The only missing operator in this simple equation is building a network of followers on Twitter who are specific to the product feed that is being syndicated.

Carol’s Daughter will host another live web chat today.  However this chat is slightly different than the last.  This time Lisa Price, Carol’s Daughter CEO will be conducting the chat from HSN (Home Shopping Network) and will broadcast it on her site.  Lately I have really been looking at how retail operations are including social media technologies into their strategies, Carol’s Daughter is no stranger to this but she is quite the exception as well.  I will be doing another post following this one about another well know brand that has taken the leap into social media.  The common factor between the 2:

The proactive use of social media to seek out who your customers are, what they like, make the shopping process even quicker in a way that makes shopping personal…from your computer.

The chat w/ Carol’s Daughter startes like now, you can catch it here.