The Evolution of ROFLCon / The Mainstreaming of the Web

Having attended the previous two ROFLCons (2008 and 2010), I’ve noticed a not-so-subtle shift in the underlying theme/sentiment of each event. Described as the first ever Internet culture conference, ROFLCon was a true celebration of web culture when it occurred in 2008 as iconic content creators, editors and fans gathered together for the first time IRL (in real life). It was a who’s who of popular internet stars running the gamut from individuals who had achieved “internet fame” via YouTube (Gem Sweater girl), influential content creators (XKCD) and venerable web icons (Tron Guy). At the time, I vividly recall all of my friends giving me blank stares when I rattled off the attendee list and giddily shared highlights of the two days at MIT.

In 2010, I returned to Cambridge with high hopes for a repeat event – two more days of celebrating the joys of the web filled with lots and lots of lolz – but the tone of the event had clearly shifted. While still celebratory in nature, the main theme of ROFLCon II was the encroachment of the “mainstream” upon the formerly more exclusive corners of meme-culture on the web. What was particularly interesting is this “mainstreaming” was both embraced – David and his father from David after the Dentist and Christian Lander of Stuff White People Like were both popular additions to the conference – and strongly attacked – Ben Huh of the (I Can Haz) Cheezburger network was grilled (no pun intended) for his monetization of lolcats. Additionally, a common topic of conversation discussed among many panelists was the growing presence of brands and marketers entering the space and the fear around potential implications tied to their entry.

This past weekend, rumored to be the last ever ROFLCon, the conference centered around the general sentiment (in the form of passive resignation) that the internet has “gone mainstream” and now we must as a community ensure that it is protected. Many panelists from this year have snowballed their 15 minutes of Internet fame into sponsorships and appearances (Nyan Cat was in a Sprint Nexus commercial; Antoine Dodson had a chart-topping iTunes song and an appearance on Tosh.0; Paul “Double Rainbow Guy” Vasquez was in a Windows Live Photo Gallery spot) and with that commercial success (albeit likely only momentary), many at ROFLCon questioned if the web is beginning to lose its authenticity and creative spirit. moot, the originator of 4chan and a demi-god within the ROFLcon subculture, shared a somewhat bleak vision for the future of the web: “The web is being stripped of its richness. Memes are the instruments by which we make music. The way things are going, we’re going to lose our song.”

I personally disagree with this sentiment. I believe that as more people continue to gain access to high-speed internet and content creation tools, we will come to see even more niche communities sprout on the web. Yes, Facebook and Reddit have arguably replaced forums and AOL chat rooms, but advances in technology and connectivity have provided new outlets for many more creative minds. One of the more interesting panels at ROFLcon examined international “internet revolutions” in Brazil, China and Syria and the impact that meme culture has had in providing a voice to the people in each country. And the best part, what’s funny in Brazil or edgy in Syria is not necessarily funny or edgy in the US. The web is wonderful because it can offer content and utilities that are designed for mass consumption, but it can just as easily provide a voice to a solitary cause or community, or it can simply be a place where you upload your really awkward prom pictures or that video you made when trying to complete the cinnamon challenge.

There were still very many lolz at this year’s ROFLCon. And as an advertising guy, it was selfishly rewarding to see Craig Allen of Weiden and Kennedy (he wrote the Old Spice Guy ads) and Isaiah Mustafa (the Old Spice Guy) so warmly embraced during their Q&A. But in addition to the laughs, there were also many serious, important conversations around the future of the web – mostly re: intellectual property and the remixing of content. It was inspiring to see via a show of hands that almost all of the attendees had taken action in the recent SOPA debacle. And it was great to hear passionate debate around the broader theme of the “mainstreaming of the web”. I for one am excited for the next chapter of the web.

And as we enter that next chapter, my advice for marketers is don’t aim to create memes, and don’t simply cut and paste a meme into your advertising efforts in an attempt to be relevant or edgy. As a marketer, I’m incredibly aware of the lines between authenticity and blatant commercialization, and consumers can very quickly identify the differences between the two. As a brand, aim to create smart, engaging content, and then open the doors for your consumers to make it their own.

Author Notes:

*I use “nerd” in a loving context – I consider myself part of the collective.

** From Wikipedia, an internet “meme” is used to describe any “concept that spreads via the Internet”

It’s a convention held to celebrate and discuss internet memes and the celebrity that is often created alongside them.

Hear Matt Jacobs, AMP’s Director of Integrated Marketing, and Matt Rainone, Manager of Integrated Marketing, discuss key takeaways from this year’s ROFLCon.

• How many times I’ve been told ‘I love you’ by complete strangers
• All of the new delicious food and beer I’ve sampled
• The talent and variety of artists that I’ve been able to jam to– Jay-Z, Stevie Wonder, The Dead Weather, Mumford and Sons, Kings of Leon, Damien Marley, to name a few – and I still have another full day of music to go!

Needless to say, after my first music festival, I was hooked. Instead of succumbing to sleep after a near-sleepless weekend and a 16-hour drive home, I collapsed on my couch, laptop in hand, determined to find my next fest. Much to my dismay, there was a serious lack of centralized information on these events. To make matters worse, the little information that is out there tends to be hard to find, outdated, and unreliable. After discussing these frustrations with my web developer boyfriend, Steve, we decided to solve the problem ourselves. We created the site: festobsessed.com to make it easier to find reliable festival information and advice. Our site features an event map and calendar, blog, and forum for sharing pictures and ideas. Despite the wild popularity of music festivals, the online community is undeveloped, which poses ample opportunity for brands.

In addition to a strong online presence, the festival scene is also lacking in another area – vending. Festival goers consider the weekend to be a vacation and spend accordingly. After all, “wasting money puts you in a real party mood,” as Andy Warhol so insightfully proclaimed. Most people go with plenty of cash in their pockets and are looking to empty them on new, unique items. I have left several festivals disappointed in the lack of shopping that I had accomplished, due to lack of vendors, lack of variety, and shops running out of merchandise.

However, not every brand will be welcomed with open arms. Do not plan on only putting up banners and signs and expect positive feedback. For the best results, tailor your presence to us. Have your brand provide art installations, an air-conditioned lounge, or another amenity that meets our needs. Keep in mind that the community as a whole is young (18-28), artsy, environmentally conscious, fit, healthy, passionate, and open-minded. Patrons hope to leave with memories of great music, interesting people, and new experiences. Any way in which our experience is enhanced will be appreciated and remembered.

The music festival scene is an under tapped market in terms of online resources, vending, and festival-specific marketing. It is hard to even estimate the scope of opportunity considering the high attendance rates (in total, millions of young adults), number of events (more than 300 in the U.S.), and media coverage, especially for big events like Coachella or Lollapalooza. By associating your brand with our favorite weekend of the year, you will be cementing your products in some of our most beloved pictures, videos, memories, and shopping bags.

We were inspired by the Playmakers and also wanted to do something nice for our co-workers at AMP, so we whipped up a few batches of regular and chocolate chip pancakes and asked everyone to fill out a card that said “Life is good because…”. Throughout the morning, we encouraged donations for the Playmakers in exchange. It was fun, easy and inspiring to take a moment to reflect on exactly why life is so good.

Feel free to contribute via the link below and help us provide the life-changing programs and support that restore playfulness, joy, optimism and loving connections to our most vulnerable children.

http://fundraising.lifeisgood.com/site/TR/Lifeisgood/EverydayFundraiser?team_id=1480&pg=team&fr_id=1070

It’s a change that researchers and retailers are extremely mindful of because when you think about all those un-bought binders, you realize just how much they can add up to. But it’s not just important to think about how much money parents spend during this time, it is also important to think about why they spend it.

Back to School time brings about change. Change in the leaves, change in the temperature. Kids grow older, taller, chubbier, and more or less popular. They look to form new ideas and new identities. While this change may be exciting for parents (or depressing!), it is something they have no control over.

One thing parents do have control over, however, is what they buy for their kids. The desire for control urges them to buy, but also means they are part of their kid’s experience. Because as it turns out, going to class with them isn’t going to happen.

Bottom line?

Allowing parents to be a key part of the Back to School process is even more important. This means retailers should implement a variety of tactics including sales and promotions making shopping easier by calling out the products kids need and merchandising them in a way parents and kids can navigate. Parents want to be part of the story and have a little control over it. Give them at least that!

Teens as Purchase Influencers

It’s generally parents that control the purse strings for BTS shopping, but the teens still do their best to run the show. After all, does mom really know that boldly-colored skinny jeans are the ‘it’ item teen girls must have for BTS? Teens report that they strongly influence BTS purchase decisions across categories, and their influence only gets stronger as they approach college age.

Teens have even more control over their own discretionary spending. A recent study conducted by Piper Jaffray concluded that teens discretionary spending in categories like fashion, cosmetics, and electronics is projected to increase in 2012. If this projection comes to fruition, it will mark the first upswing in teen spending in over a decade.

Think like a Teen

Teens’ influence over BTS purchases and increased discretionary spending this year means that they are not an audience marketers should ignore. Thinking like a teen can help brands’ communications make an impact with this audience.  A great deal or promotion, for example, allows teens to stretch their limited discretionary money further. A compelling deal also makes convincing parents to purchase a specific brand much easer.

When it comes to placement, remember that this generation of teens is digital natives – they’ve grown up using the internet and digital devices. Social media is a great vehicle for getting teens to encounter your brand’s communications in the course of their daily Facebook browsing.

Fads and Functionality

The teen demographic is a worthwhile focus for marketers. Successful efforts can be achieved by leveraging knowledge about teens’ BTS purchase behaviors. Brands should think like a teen, remembering that their BTS shopping is motivated by desire to express their identities and align themselves with what’s en vogue. But don’t forget about the parents! Communication must also appeal to these more rational primary purchasers via performance claims, product functionality and affordability.

What does this mean to advertisers? 

Google has indicated that the new match settings are an attempt to grow click volume, while offering greater control than Broad match and Broad Match Modifier. Advertisers who follow best practices of including plurals and misspellings should not see a major spike in volume. If these keyword permutations do not exist in an account, then click traffic will likely increase due to greater reach. For advertisers currently bidding separately on misspelling and plurals, the new update to Exact and Phrase matching may be an opportunity to improve campaign performance without sacrificing click volume as demonstrated below.

Advertiser Opportunity  

Existing Settings

Misspellings typically receive a small amount of click volume, but can vary depending on the brand and vertical.  CPC’s, CTR’s and Quality Scores are associated separately for misspellings/plurals from core terms when bid on independently.

Keyword Opportunity

The new match type configurations will allow relevant query traffic to be channeled through the core terms and hence will not require separate bidding on misspellings and plurals. This consolidates traffic allowing for quicker optimizations. The sooner advertisers can find CPC and creative trends, the quicker they can positively influence Quality Score. Traditionally, Exact match keywords drive better Quality Score for they are most relevant to the query. As advertisers drive more traffic from Exact match keywords, it should have a positive impact on overall campaign performance.

Creative Opportunity

Dynamic Keyword Insertion ads may also benefit from this update as well. When DKI ads match to misspellings that are deliberately bid on, the ad displays the misspelled keyword. Obviously this is a negative user experience and precludes the use of DKI ad formats for misspelling ad groups. The expanded criteria for Phrase and Exact match will eliminate the need for targeting misspellings directly, therefore DKI can be used freely without jeopardizing the user experience. DKI ad formats generally drive stronger CTR, which creates an opportunity for advertisers.

AMP Recommendation

In attempt to leverage possible opportunities that come with Google’s updated Exact and Phrase matching, AMP recommends pausing existing plurals and misspellings to allow the incremental traffic to match to existing core keywords. The hypothesis is that by allowing more traffic to existing Exact and Phrase match keywords that traditionally have good CTR’s, the consolidated data will allow for quicker optimizations and possible lift in Quality Score. As Quality Score is difficult to predict, this will have to be measured in aggregate at least one month out from the change. Consolidated traffic from misspellings and plurals will be quicker and easier to measure and should at very least keep consistent performance.

AMP’s Director of Integrated Marketing, Matt Jacobs, discusses what this technologically advanced hologram means for marketers in this week’s Insights Lab episode.

FKi, Iggy Azalea and Diplo are taking Lil’ Wayne’s lyrics to heart with their new interactive shoppable music video, which leverages clickable video technology to create a unique user experience.

WireWAX, a UK-based startup who sells clickable video technology teamed up with SSENSE, one of Canada’s biggest online luxury apparel and accessory retailers, to create this interactive music video ‘look book.’

The clothing and accessories worn by the featured artists become shoppable directly from the video. A little ‘S’ appears atop a scene when some of the clothing on display is available for sale. You just hover your mouse until ‘Shop This Look’ pops up and then click.

“This is the first time the worlds of music, fashion and commerce have truly overlapped,” says SSENSE CEO Rami Atallah. “The integration we are introducing between technology, entertainment and retail with this video not only creates a unique experience for the audience, but also has utility. People often wonder what performers are wearing, where they can purchase that item – we have bridged that gap.”

Personally, I think this idea is brilliant as it has the makings for a successful digital campaign. Apologies in advance for the alliterative buzzwords…FKi’s lyrics must have inspired me.

1. Insightful: The music video leverages the insight that consumers aspire to be like their favorite celebrities or role models. Celebrities are viewed as fashionable, stylish and trendy.
2. Integrated: As Attallah stated, this idea converges technology, entertainment and retail—reaching an engaged audience.
3. Interactive: The hotspots enable the audience to choose what outfit they want to learn more about, thereby giving them control and the ability to interact with the product.
4. Immediate: The video provides two layers of immediacy. First, you can satisfy your curiosity by answering: who made it, how much does it cost, do they have my size, where can I buy it, etc. Second, if you like what you see, you can immediately purchase the garment. Instant retail therapy.

So, maybe the video doesn’t fully follow Weezy’s instructions to throw [money] but the video still implies an impulse gesture via the “SHOP THIS LOOK” call-to-action.