Crush Brands

Much similar to experiences felt during Dallas storm season of 2011, information is being distributed at a high rate of speed and efficiency.  I sat in my downtown apartment recently when I received an alarming text message from a friend.  The screen shot was as follows.

As I sat on the couch enjoying my night, I happened to be watching OnDemand at the time and was therefore disconnected with current news.  Typically, I am in front of a computer for the majority of my day and fully connected, however, for some reason I wasn’t paying much attention to the computer screen in front of me to learn about what’s going on around me.

Instantaneously, I flipped the channel to the local news affiliates hoping to gather some information on a course of action.  Needless to say, “America’s Got Talent” didn’t provide me which much about the current natural gas leak that was occurring about a half a block from my location.

Sub consciously, it’s certainly the most plausible response to flip on the TV as it has previously been the quickest source of information.  We have been become naturally acquainted with the TV as being our security blanket when learning about the things that help, intrigue, and inspire us but we are certainly heading in a different direction.

On the other hand, as I immediately became apprehensive about the situation, I logged onto my Twitter and Facebook account seeking keywords relating to the potential natural disaster at hand.  Again, almost as immediately as I was able to populate my search, I received up to the second information from the sources that were handling the clean up as well as those who were physically outside my door speaking with police officers who offered a course of action.

Being in close proximity, my next move was the walk downstairs and witness the alleged “ground zero.”  The situation was volatile and these types of situations are taken very seriously by municipal workers.  I didn’t learn much from the officer who actually had less information on the situation as I did.  As soon as I mentioned how I had learned so much about the situation, I told him about Twitter updates and Facebook posts.  He seemed impressed and mentioned he had just recently created a Twitter account.

As I walked back to my side of the street, I noticed him pull out his personal smart phone and begin to browse about.  I couldn’t be exactly sure on what he was looking at or who he was calling but I could only assume he was looking for more information himself, probably from Twitter...

Due to the graphic nature of this post, reader discretion is advised.  Please don’t pay any attention to this disclaimer because due to the forum in which this blog will be posted and the nature of its content, the language will be clean.

Recently, I had an impressively long interaction with Tumblr’s customer service.  In my opinion, lengthy includes 10+ emails in terms of e-correspondence.  Needless to say, my conversation exceeded 10+ emails.  The service was prompt and efficient but certainly confused me with their methods. 

To set the scene, I had a problem with my Internet Browsers (Chrome, Mozilla, and Explorer) to where my machine was unable to connect or login to tumblr.  I was plagued with screenshots such as these:

  Each email that I received back from Technical Support was signed by a different technician.  From Scott to Renee the name was never the same.  What I can’t understand is the ability for one technician to grasp to entirety of my problem as relayed simply from one email to another.  Needless to say it was obnoxious. 

They assumed that my level of computer use, which I do not boast to be extensive, was the level of anyone under the age of 8 and/or over the age of 40, which is vastly limited.  I understand how Browsing History works and I understand that the Login key is the button I use to access my account.

Strange timing for the social network giant that prides itself on discounts.  With its recent announcement of public offering, the question remains; will you be getting a discounted stock price?

This seems to be contingent on whether or not the purchaser believes that the price will continue to rise when so many others are replicating the model.  In this day in age, the original isn’t necessarily the most successful.  We see that Groupon is getting killed by similar services such as LivingSocial.com, Local.com, and many others who are replicating the “deal finding” model.

One should always stand weary of something that grows so fast, all the while realizing that there must be a ceiling on the success of a particular service such as Groupon in an industry that is becoming saturated daily with upstarts of similar genre.  While Groupon continues to rely on its catalysts, I.E. Forbes conclusion that Groupon is the fastest growing company ever, the tangible revenue numbers cannot continue to be denied.

Something that is in perpetual motion can only be stops if acted upon by an outside force and it seems as though profit might be that outside force.  We question whether or not Groupon has ever made money despite its reporting in the first quarter of 2010.  The new model of online based companies and social networks derives value of the company far exceeding their profits.  However, how far does that model get you unless you are among the Facebooks and Twitters of the world? 

Groupon continues to give explanations for their losses yet are certainly not hiding them.  They claim that marketing expense, which is extraordinary for Groupon in particular, is factored in prior to reporting quarterly numbers which is essentially the .com model.  They expect to raise $750 million in options upon their offering.  There needs to be a point when they cut back with their advertising/marketing dollars and figure another, less costly method of attracting unique users.  It seems the only logical answer to the question is the use of alternative social media platforms that are essentially considered competitors!

It has become excessively questionable as something that might be “To Good To Be True.”  As a somewhat educated onlooker, I always question the future of something that continues to exceed expectations.  Soon enough, expectations continue to rise and all it takes is one mistake to ruin the reputation quality.  Word of mouth must continue to be Groupon’s sole catalyst all the while maintaining the rapport that it has with its current and future users and shareholders.

My personal opinion from someone who moderately plays the market is to buy quickly and sell quickly within 2-3 quarters.  By no means is there is any way to predict where the company will be in a year or two years because of the unprecedented success it’s experienced.  The powers that be at Groupon are obviously much smarter than me, but questionable moves, such as the rejection of a $6 billion offer from Google, raise red flags about pride and ego among executive leadership.  Google’s plans are set to launch a similar model to rival Groupon, and they are certainly not a company with which ANYONE (with exception to Facebook in terms of future company acquisitions) wants to compete.  For a company who thrives on discount, they certainly are spending out of their means, thus, are looking to lean on future share holders.  Do you want to be that guy?

As we sit in the crawl space under the stairwell in a Texas home, the three full grown men and two women were fetal position with a glass of wine or a beer in their hand.  No, this isn’t some cruel ritualistic fraternity hazing agenda.  We were literally compelled from the couch in our living room the “safest” room in the house which happens to be about 5 feet deep and 3 feet wide.  Tornado warnings are no joke.  Having been in the state of Texas residentially for the 2 weeks, I’ve seen more rampant storms than my previous years of life combined.  Needless to say, Southern California and Arizona does not see its share of weather.

Anyway, as we sit their cramped and relatively unconcerned, I took it upon myself to risk life and limb (no so much, or any at all) to casually walk into the living room to grab my computer… and a fresh beer.  Being somewhat in the weatherman’s digitally generated storm path, their color coding ranged from green to black in severity of the storm with green being least and black being most.  Speaking with my uncle, a lifelong Texas native, he had said that he’d never seen black before.  Needless to say, we were in the path of the black digital funnel cloud!

With my laptop in hand, I considered my options for connectivity to not only to track the weather but also watch the Bulls vs. Heat.  I’ll preface by saying that I continuously try to express to my 60+ year old uncle the concept of social media and although he usually responds with an expression of understanding, I can tell that the gears aren’t fully turning.  I decided to conduct an experiment to gather empirical evidence proving to my Uncle the value instantaneous connectivity and information provided on TWITTER! 

“What’s ‘Tweeter’ going to tell us about the weather?” he responds.  After logging on, I searched key terms such as ‘Tornados,’ ‘Funnel Clouds,’ ‘Storms,’ ‘Dallas,’ etc.  Then began following as many weather service handles, storm chasers, and any handle that has Tweeted something including those key terms with or without links attached.  I created a list to view all of them together as they continued to respond with pictures and updates on funnel cloud sightings and locations. 

It became an informational war between TV and Internet as we were able to return to the living room television to gather updates.  The next and final battle occurred as we sat, my computer still in hand, to watch the weatherman on the evening news.  I was armed with weather.com’s live, up to the second, tracker and Twitter.  Uncle was armed with the TV weatherman.  Needless again to say, I was reporting the news minutes before the TV was able to relay the message much to the intrigue of Uncle. 

Game, Set, Match.  Another converted soul.

Do you ever wonder what the police officer hanging out at the end of the block is looking at on the computer in his squad car?  The long standing joke that the officer is browsing his Facebook ad Tweeting has become a reality.  Law enforcement offices around the country are looking to social networks to solve crimes.  Traditional is converging with modern crime fighting as social networking basically creates a society within itself.  Status updates and photos tags have turned into self incrimination as alibis are wiped away.  First, it was employers using the power of Facebook to deny candidates job opportunities, not it’s Johnny Law Facebooking to connect the dots.

My two favorite crime fighting groups of all time happen to the E-Team and the A-Team.  More of you are probably familiar with the A-Team as Bradley Cooper recently starred in a remake of the hit 1980s TV sitcom.  The E-Team happen to accompany one of the greatest crime fighters of all time, Captain Planet.  Not only did Captain Planet rid the world of non eco-friendly villains but embodied the power of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, and Heart.  Crime fighting has evolved since we were kids as police forces are cracking down on violent, must mostly non-violent, offenders.  Social media established itself not only as the most popular way to social interact, and now, an innovative way to fight crime.

As previously eluded, there was certainly a level of sarcasm in the “violent, but mostly non-violent offenders” comment.  Having been victim of circumstance on more than one occasion to, overzealous police officers in largely white suburban neighborhoods, I certainly have my opinions toward local law enforcement.  However, recent press has been focused on officers using social media to solve crimes.  FINALLY POLICE DEPARTMENTS AROUND THE COUNTRY HAD A BRIGHT, NON BARBARIC IDEA!  It’s about time that municipal law enforcement are staying out of the headlines for blatant and typically racially motivated examples breaching procedure. 

As important as law enforcement is to the mechanics of a functioning society, there is no denying that most press is bad press for police departments nationwide.  The use of social media for the greater good of state, city, or neighborhood can definitely help the war on crime.  It becomes difficult to fathom an innovative, futuristic form of crime fighting.  My views of “futuristic crime fighting” largely fall into what I like to call the “Schwarzenegger Effect.”  Starting with Terminator, the ‘governator’ had made a film career portraying modern and futuristic law enforcement figures.  The list speaks for itself, Terminator, Terminator 2, Terminator 3, Total Recall, Kindergarten Cop, Last Action Hero, True Lies, Collateral Damage, and even a film that’s currently in pre production titled The Last Stand.  All have one things in common, huge Austrian muscles and laying the smack down against evil.

It’s pretty apparent that Total Recall and the Terminator have very little bearing on what they considered to be futuristic crime fighting a quarter century ago.  However, they all have a common denominator of profiling individuals as means to an end result.  Social media provides the perfect forum for crime fighters to Tweet or Facebook their way around unsolved mysteries as the entire platform was built upon profiling! If a small piece of advice can be given to criminals, don’t Tweet or Update a Facebook Status that sounds, “So glad I just got away with that robbery/leud conduct/rape/murder/high speed chase.  GLAD TO BE HOME FREE!  Thank God for Facebook, or else I wouldn’t be able to tell anyone about it…”  I’m thinking about writing a movie script about a futuristic crime fighter using ONLY Facebook and Twitter to find criminals.  My star will obviously be Arnold Schwarzenegger with his signature tagline being, “Book ‘Em!”  Stayed tuned for investment opportunities and release dates…

-R. Hendrix

Chad Ochocinco has become a bi-product of professional football and social media.  No more is he famous for the underachieving on the field that has occurred in the last two years but for his over the top personality presented on his social media platforms.  Chad has recently legally changed his name back to Chad Johnson for the sake of being something after his football career is over.  Let’s be honest, FOX Network is not going to hire a man named “Ochocinco” as an analyst after his career is over.  However, we can look to Chad as an icon in the social media industry. 

Not only does social media have to capabilities of creating A, B, C, & D list celebrities, but it also has to power to send one who might be an A or B lister down to the ranks of a C, D, or even E lister.  It is a phenomenon that has the power to work both ways, therefore, shouldn’t it be in the hands of someone who understands what is socially accepted to post or tweet?  On the other hand, what might cause a complete and utter self implosion.  Take for example, Chris Douglas-Roberts and Rashard Mendenhall.  I can’t even express the stupidity compiled in the heads of these two athletes. 

You might remember Douglas-Roberts from the 2008 Memphis Tigers team, featuring also Derrick Rose, which fought all the way to the NCAA championship but ultimately crapping the bed to a more experienced Kansas team.  It feels like CDR hasn’t scored a point since college but we are proved wrong by his whopping 7.7 points per game in, thus far, three NBA seasons.  Mendenhall, on the other hand, has become the focal point of the Pittsburgh Steelers offense boasting 13 rushing touchdowns in 2010. 

Their status as public figures is questionable seeing as Mendenhall wears a helmet and Douglas-Roberts just plain sucks.  In the media industry, “no press is bad press.”  I put very little stock into this concept as there is much press that is indeed BAD press.  CDR was the first to sound off from his Twitter account condemning the American people for celebrating when Osama Bin Laden was assassinated.  His general message stated that he opposed American lives being lost in the search for the terrorist and questioned whether or not it was worth it.  This triggered a backlash amongst tweeters instantly creating 3,000 replies and retweets condemning the Milwaukee Bucks’ swingman. 

Mendenhall had a slightly different angle on the situation with similar results.  Mendenhall is a conspiracy theorist and decided it was smart to express his feeling about 9/11 to the Twitter world claiming, “We’ll never really know what happened.  I just have a hard time believing that a plane could take down a skyscraper demolition style.”  Easy Rashard, it’s certainly true that you went to the fine institution of the University of Illinois, however, I also had friends who went there and remembered you being enrolled in their class, yet they never remembered actually seeing you there.  It’s obvious you should stick to avoiding tacklers, not angry American citizens.  If that wasn’t bad enough, Mendenhall continued by posting, “What kind of person celebrates death?  It’s amazing how people can HATE a man they have never even heard speak.  We’ve only seen one side.”  I’m not even going to touch this one…Champion Athletics released Mendenhall from his sponsorship deal over the comments resulting in millions of dollars lost for the running back.  Should athletes have an employee that censors their social media?

It’s true that athletes have public relations employees, some having to work harder than others.  We have previously witnessed the rise and fall of employees in that particular industry, most recently, Terrell Owens PR employee who was unceremoniously fired after allegations of TO attempting suicide.  Her response to the situation, “TO has 11 million reasons not to kill himself.”  This obviously in reference to the lucrative contract he had recently signed with the Dallas Cowboys. How far does their influence reach with egotistical professional athletes?  When you put the power of the written word into the hands of someone who might not have even attended class in college or even high school, its leaves the door of disaster open.  As professional sports goes, with millions of dollars at stake, it’s risky to put that in the hands of someone who has spent their entire life succeeding physically and not necessarily intellectually.  There is certainly a large amount of jealousy I have towards professional athletes as all American children, I included, aspire to be rich, famous, and talented.  However, it might be smart to leave the literary mass messaging to those who know what they’re doing.

As LinkedIn prepares to make its debut on the NYSE this Thursday, May 19, 2011, it marks the first US born social network platform to go public.  As we all become saturated with news about unemployment, foreclosure, and recession, we can view social media as means to improvement.  LinkedIn has official dominated the professional online job market with a platform that was initially with social basis.  As time moved on, they sought the need for expansion as well as to provide a service the United States so desperately need, job listings.  Despite the fact that LinkedIn is NOT the first social network platform in the world to go public, it is certainly setting a symbolic business model that others like Twitter and Facebook could follow in the future.

The Chinese have already offered a social networking product to the NYSE with great success.  It was able to raise nearly $750 million in options.  Much could be the case for LinkedIn as they already boast 100 million registered professionals.  Getting down into the nitty gritty of the network, we find that the 100 million user number could be a little bit skewed.  I will preface the next statement by clearly stating that I AM a LinkedIn user, and while I don’t spend as much time there as Twitter or Facebook, the functionality and overall retention of active users is second to none.  However, as you browse through member to member we find that many pages have been registered yet for some, much like a new toy, become dormant and understanding over time.

Nothing is more frustrating than establishing a contact and not knowing what is socially or professionally acceptable to make contact with that particular person.  Take for example the city of Las Vegas.  Granted that the reason people travel to Las Vegas is to probably commit acts of questionable ethics or morals.  We ALL know that, “what happens there, stays there.”  On the other hand, Las Vegas is the perfect breeding ground for networking.  More specifically, imagine the environment within a casino floor or elsewhere having a social cocktail.  Some might consider making a professional contact while out socially as being under respected.  I like to consider the opposite to be true as there is no better time to retain someone’s name after listening to any stories of success they have to provide.  Let’s be honest, the best way to establish an opinion of whether or not the person you are talking to is successfully than by the way he/she purchases drinks and services as well as the type of drinks they are drinking.  For example, for a whiskey drinking, odds on, the person drinking Makers Mark is going to have a better success story that the person drinking the well brand.

From personal experience, Las Vegas has been very bad and very good to me in past years.  Omitting the poor times, which all happened to occur at poker tables, the good times were filling with libation and networking.  Very rarely do you find a place where others go to spend lavishly.  Specifically, a friend of mine and I casually enjoyed a cocktail at the Aria Hotel.  Soon after, we ended up sharing a table and stories with two gentlemen who ended up covering the tab for our table because we let them sit with us.  In the end, the only pieces of personal information that came to fruition were their first name and job titles.  In previous years, it would be impossible to locate these two gentlemen from Houston, TX.  However, only 15 minutes it took to locate both on LinkedIn.  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!  It turns out; one of the gentlemen happens to be a very successful sales executive of medical devices in the Houston area and could potentially be offering another contact of mine a job.  All made possible in a LinkedIn success story!

It becomes the perfect breeding ground for professional networking as everyone is openly displaying their wealth.  If I may use an analogy, Las Vegas physically can be similar to LinkedIn as many of the filters in search items have already been eliminated.  It’s difficult to tell the worth of a professional based on a title, but to physically observe people spending money is very demonstrative of their success.  Be careful though, in this day and age, many spend lavishly on credit to send off a false perception.

All in all, the message I am sending is that contacts are invaluable regardless of how they are made.  LinkedIn’s public offering sparks a conversation about the best ways to connect with one another socially or professionally.  The means, although I feel to be important, are can sometimes be overshadowed by the end result.  Therefore, despite the way you make your professional contacts, whether it LinkedIn or Wet Republic in Las Vegas, keep them close and continue to recycle them often as this becomes the basis for professional relationships.  Keep those contacts coming early and often to develop your own personal CRM.  Professionally and socially, it is converging to normalcy that most connections are made electronically in some way shape of form.  On today’s agenda, electronic professional networking on LinkedIn, eventually our society is transitioning entire lives onto the computer and will ultimately bring other networking sites dealing with more personal information such as Match.com to completely normalcy.

What do Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, and President Obama have in common?  Other than the fact they are ranked 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respectively for having the largest Twitter following in the world.  The leader of the free world is the most recognized icon in the world but apparently not the most followed.  Bieber Fever has swept the nation absorbing everything in its path like a runaway tornado surpassed only by the unusual exploits of Gaga.  Obama will not take a backseat in the social media realm as he was the first presidential candidate to adopt and successfully use social media as a political forum.  Moreover, with the unrest happening all throughout Muslim nations, the only information stream out of the country happens to be Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.   

A fine line is being drawn between celebrity and political figure.  Our media is saturated with glorified images of our civil leaders jogging on the beach or on a family vacation thereby making it ‘political’ and therefore newsworthy.  Media outlets have converged on this type of messaging not only to close a credibility gap with their viewers, but also giving them something more than issue based politics that many feel is boring and mundane.  There are exceptions to this particular theory but each of which is still driven by money and ratings.  For example, FOX and NBC expand based upon power and influence that they gain over time.  Fox News, CSNBC, and MSNBC were created in order to present fact based news reports.  Their demographic is much smaller with these networks geared to those who ACTUALLY want to stay informed with important issues and not Italian sex parties thrown by its Prime Minister.  Although that particular story is certainly news worthy, it deals nothing with political mechanic or policy yet is still consider political news.

Price and value have been made distinctly different entities when determined the ‘worth’ of a web based company.  For example, Twitter is at an estimated value of $10 billion while revenue exceeds slightly over $50 million in 2010.  This leads people to question, “Where’s the rest of the $9.95 billion?”  The answer lies in innovation.  The social networking world is becoming highly saturated with innovative forums with over zealous entrepreneurs looking to capitalize on consumer intrigue.  On the other hand, business owners in other industries recognize the innovation and don’t want to be left behind.  Where else can a local business owner target primarily the consumers already interested in purchasing their product or service within their geographic region?  Wasted advertising dollars are a thing of the past as we transition into specifically driven marketing.

Keyword search enhances the ability to be found.  The more a brand name shows up in search results, the more likely the viewer will retain that particular word or image. How do we increase those numbers?  Big business is being drawn not only from those who offer ‘search engine optimization’ but also those who participate.  Paid placement, contextual advertising, and paid inclusion are the three aspects the comprise SEO marketing.  Is it right for my business?  Multi-leveled SEO marketing allows something for all levels of business.  The more placements across multiple channels provide heavy resources for large companies with low to mid level businesses rely on strategic placement.  No mom and pop store is going to spend tens of thousands of dollars reaching the masses when their service is provided locally.

On the other hand, social media is providing a shift in business mechanics not only for the largest of companies, but it is developing a call to action for local businesses who offer a service or product that is relevant nationwide to create an online presence.  For example, as social media channels continue to expand, they continue to add more commerce friendly components to what had previously been strictly social.  For example, imagine a local store providing a valuable product or service that can benefit a consumer on the east coast, west coast, or Midwest.  Facebook does not currently allow for companies to conduct direct online transactions from business to consumer.  They have allowed for a variety of Ads which mirror off to the company’s official website.  But what if they haven’t quite established a website?  How do they convert an ad into a sale without the use of a phone?  The next wave of social media seems to be online transaction.  Imagine social media platform that can not only establish the popularity but also provide means to a sale.  This allows smaller companies to save money and establish a social media page without having yet to establish an official website. 

The goal of attracting attention to a product or service is to make a sale and online transaction has become the number one method of consumer purchase but also offer connectivity to eventually lead a consumer back for multiple purchases.  An isolated transaction is all well and good but however the ability for that purchase to be replicated is invaluable.  The ultimate goal of those who provide web based marketing is to maximize the number of hits in a day, month, year, 10 years.  The supplemental goal is to figure out how they achieve this goal in as little clicks as possible.  As a business owner I leave you with this question… Do you want to be left behind or would you like to join the rest of the world and ultimately setting yourself apart by becoming an industry thought leader?  Always think about the ways you can use SEO marketing and social media to create an online center of commerce.

INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY!

Hey guys and gals! We are currently searching for two part-time summer interns at Crush Brands Social Media.  The Job starts in mid-May and ends in August.  The job is primarily content creation and strategy for several clients.

You are:

- Familiar with all basic Social Media outlets (FB, Twitter, Linked, Tumblr, Wordpress, and Youtube at the minimum).

-Mac Savvy and familiar with iWork 09’, (Pages in particular) .

-Passionate about social media usage for business and for marketing yourself.

-Always trying to learn more about how to use social media for micro PR, marketing, and CRM.

-Somewhat of a rule breaker.

-A Junior or Senior in college, or freshly graduated (Preferably Business Marketing, Journalism, and Graphic Design Majors) but not limited to.

-Capable of spending 20-30 hours a week to spend working on Crush Brands projects/ tasks.

- An outside the box thinker.

-Able to tackle work tasks at home and at the Office.

-In the Dallas area (UpTown, SMU, Preston Hollow, Addison)

  Hello World!

Crush Brands has made a lot of big moves in the past month! We recently moved into a new office located at Haskell and Highway 75 in Dallas, TX!

  We recently took on a new client, Barrington Gifts, a high end luxury leather goods company. 

  Crush Brands has received exclusive rights to software using QR codes. This technology is revolutionizing the way users consume and/or create mobile content. Check out CyBar Cards.

A new Twitter security flaw has been violating thousands of Twitter accounts, redirecting users to third-party websites without their consent. This bug is worse than most because it activates these unwanted websites on mouseover only, meaning pop-ups and third-party websites can open even if you just move your mouse over links without clicking. A Twitter Spokesperson says the problem has been patched, but as a social media management firm, do we take the risk of posting links on our accounts that could still potentially affect our following? 

With all of the problems Twitter has faced in the past involving server outages and system overloads, we can't say we're too surprised to be dealing with this hack. Twitter claims the new site that is built almost entirely in Javascript and will redefine its architecture to solve most of these problems. But to be honest, we'll believe it when we see it. 

 For now, we advise using third-party apps like Tweetdeck or Ubertwitter until later today. Better to be safe than sorry, right?

Meet the Crush Brands Team!