January 28th, 2010 
This Infor campaign character, most commonly known on Twitter as @Big_ERP, was recently interviewed by Thomas Wailgum at CIO.com, providing a great example of how to utilize social media to engage an audience.
January 26th, 2010 Having grown up in the late 70s and early 80s, I have to say I can’t relate to growing up during the digital age, that’s if you don’t count Atari and Intellivision as digital. Back then those were the big digital time sucks, and there were many hours spent vegging out in front of the TV playing Asteroids.
Now, being immersed in the digital age here at PJA and at home, I have to be conscious of how my six-year-old and three-year-old consume digital and how it affects their future growth.
After reading last week’s New York Time’s article, “If Your Kids Are Awake, They’re Probably Online,” I’d be remiss if I didn’t filter how long my children interact with digital media, now and in the future. The article doesn’t present anything earth shattering, but as a parent it makes me want to ensure the future of our children so that they don’t become “Google Stoopid” – turning to get answers from Google, social networks or friends for every possible question. Children certainly need to be digitally savvy, but there’s also a need for the traditional avenue of entertainment like reading the common book, or playing outside and using their imagination.
The article I mention in the New York Times shared a study from Kaiser Family Foundation who found that children “ages 8 to 18 spend more than seven and a half hours a day with such devices, compared with less than six and a half hours five years ago, when the study was last conducted. And that does not count the hour and a half that youths spend texting, or the half-hour they talk on their cell phones.”
The information alone around how many hours children engage with texting, Facebook, etc. is astounding, and the truth is, it could have a noticeable impact on their future.
January 25th, 2010 Each week, the PJA research department surveys current topics in social media. A couple of these stories become the main topic for our weekly Internet radio show, This Week in Social Media. Here is a list of stories that we think are worth knowing about.
1. Twitter with a Twist
Platform inspires brands to share content in new ways.
2. Clorox Seeking Attorney to Oversee Social Media Programs
Marketer’s move seen as testament to importance of Twitter and Facebook.
3. If Your Kids Are Awake, They’re Probably Online
The average young American now spends practically every waking minute — except for the time in school — using a smart phone, computer, television or other electronic device.
4. 712,000 Views and Counting for New Coca-Cola Happiness Video
A new happiness-themed marketing campaign by Coca-Cola has gone viral, getting more than 712,000 views within 24 hours.
5. Trapped Father Survives with Help of iPhone App
An aid worker trapped under rubble following Haiti earthquake used his iPhone app to treat his wounds.
6. OMG: Brains Can’t Handle All Our Facebook Friends
We may be able to amass 5,000 friends on Facebook, but humans’ brains are only capable of managing a maximum of 150 friendships.
7. Lenders Using Social Networks to Assess Applicants
Stacking your Twitter or Facebook contacts lists with financially-responsible friends could help improve your chances of getting a loan.
8. Will the New York Times Meter Kill Some Traffic from Social Media?
Online news sites encourage social media sharing, but they do not allow everyone to read the articles.
9. Led by Facebook, Twitter, Global Time Spent on Social Media Sites Up 82% Year over Year
Consumers spent more than five and a half hours on social networking sites in December 2009.
10. Bill Gates Now on Twitter
Microsoft co-founder joins the ranks of those “tweeting” online.
January 21st, 2010 It never amazes m
e how the rise of one technology can have such an impact on another. There are currently 2.4 billion active users worldwide using some form of SMS texting. These days though, people are using their mobile phones less and less for voice and more often for texting, hence the decline in purchases of the once popular ringtone. Yes, the ringtone. According to IBIS world, the ringtone is on a decline from $881 million in 2007 to an estimated $750 million in 2010, with the entire industry slated to virtually disappear by 2016. I remain a fan of the simple buzz of the phone, but I guess I’ll miss the guy on the train with the “Eye of the Tiger” ringtone, or waking up to “Big Ben’s” chimes in the morning.
January 20th, 2010 Sunil Dhaliwal, a general partner at Battery Ventures in Boston, on software buying, via NYT.
“The guy buying software and hardware for your average company probably looks a whole lot more like a guy raised on an iPod and an iPhone than a guy in his 60s raised on Unix terminals and big old I.B.M. mainframes,” he said. “That’s going to ripple through technology sold to companies in a really dramatic way.”
The iPod/iPhone generation doesn’t just use different devices. They use media differently in the buying process, too. What are you doing to understand how their media habits will reshape their IT buying behavior – and what you need to do to create influence?
