Eventually I'm back blogging. Apologies for the long break, I promise not to disappear again!
In order to be back in a "proper", interesting way, I've decided to kick off December with a small project: everyday until Christmas I will be publishing a short interview (5 questions, always the same) with an Adverblog's friend working in interactive. It's going to be a sort of Advent calendar so to speak, with the idea of analysing in brief what has happened in 2007 and what we can expect from 2008... As usual here on Adverblog, I'll keep the focus on Europe, but there will also be friends from all around the globe, to give you a global view on this crazy interactive world we love.
Actually, the first interview is with myself... it's not to show off, but rather to give you my point of view, so let's start!
1) Which is the digital project that impressed you more this year and why?
In my position, it's a tricky question... I would like to answer "The Diesel Heidies", because when I was working on the campaign I really had the feeling I was making the history of interactive marketing (and all the awards we've won now tell me that I maybe I was right...). However, I realize it's not fair nor nice to be auto-referential (even if I've just done it, ops! ;-) also, in order to answer this question I thought it could be a good idea to browse Adverblog's archives and look for some inspiration, but I realized this wouldn't have been the right way to proceed... so, to cut this story short and get to the point, I will indicate the first two interactive ideas that come into my mind. If they are the first I recall, it really means they impressed me...
The first is Dylan Messaging, because it's so simple, so consistent with product it's selling and so viral among the relevant target audience (read my post about it for more...). And the second is Volkswagen Drive In, because it's entertaining, extremely consistent with the campaign message Volkswagen wanted to deliver, and it has a huge viral potential that, even if it's in Dutch, it goes beyond the borders of The Netherlands where the idea has been conceived.
2) In your job, which is the most important thing you learnt this year?
Again, I have two answers... First, the negative thing... I learnt that it's very hard to deal with media companies in Italy. They are so much behind in the game, as they only think about selling banners... This makes my life harder, but also prevents the Italian digital market to keep the pace of the rest of Europe.
And now the positive thing: if you are a person (like me) with a great passion for interactive, it's a great fun to connect with consumers. The tools we have now to establish a relationship with our audience are so impressive, that for me it is so exciting to work in interactive marketing and plan campaigns together with my retail, PR and traditional advertising colleagues.
3) As a digital marketer what's on top of your agenda for 2008?
I'd like to exploit more the mobile channel, that I still don't know much and therefore for me represents a big challenge. Also, I'd like to do more to integrate our e-commerce store in our digital/integrated actions.
4) What, in your opinion, will be a killer application / key trend in interactive marketing in 2008?
I have a positive feeling about Myspace, that is becoming more and more mature (as a service) being able to offer new, interesting tools to connect with consumers. Also, I think we will see more and more interactive videos, used not only to tell a story, but also, simply, as a navigation interface.
5) Which book would you give as a Christmas present to Adverblog's readers?
I got it last year for Xmas as a preview, and it definitely helped me improving my presentations: Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Take Hold and Others Come Unstuck.
Also I would recommend a bunch of books to get some creative/graphic inspiration (and in case, they might work as coffee table books as well...)
Non-format, Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec and History of the Poster, Max Huber.
|
