Transmedia, crimes and publicity: All in one.

January 2013, Hannover. Someone stole the golden cookie which the German company "Bahlen" used as the emblem of their brand "Leibniz Keks".

A couple days after the robber sent this picture to a local newsletter:

The robber, dressed as (a seedy version of) the cookie monster, holds the golden cookie. The ransom note says that he wants the company to give cookies to the children in a near hospital, as well as 1000 € to a local animal shelter.

It was hilarious that the note specified the cookies needed for the ransom to be the good ones, "those of milk-chocolate, not the black-chococate or the plain ones".

It was also part of the joke that a former CEO of the company during the 70s went then into a political career, and the press used to call him "the cookie monster".

Of course Sesame street hurried to keep clear that they had nothing to do with all that:

Cookie Monster: Me no steal the golden cookie. But me willing to help find real cookie thief!bit.ly/VlS0VD

— Sesame Street (@sesamestreet) January 29, 2013

 And the company, also pretty fast, said to the media that they were happily willing to pay a ransom of 52.000 packs of cookies to 52 different NGOs. And reminded of their many current proofs of "social involvement". Just after some more days the cookie was back again.

Since whole story was so funny and beautiful at the same time, it had international effect on the press. Besides, the company managed all this so well that they turned it into a huge opportunity for publicity:

Finally many cookies were given, and the brand gained (or recovered) lots of fans. As they say here in Germany "Ende Gut, Alles gut".

Brandin-4G and the "SMART-use-of-the-PHONE" movement

The downloading and usage of Smartphone applications have rocketed in the last 2 years, from being just a far-off novelty, to become our daily bread. And this trend is going to continue for the next years⁽¹⁾. In February a survey said that more than 70% of smartphones users had up to 30 apps⁽²⁾, which means nowadays they might be even more.

All this information is enough reason for companies for trying to use this new platform to offer their content -audiovisual companies-, to reach more clients and reach them better -services companies- and to interact and get publicity -any company in search for branding-. This is why “mobile marketing” is now one of the focuses for advertisers, publicists and media planners. All they try to find the way to get a share of the time consumers spend nowadays in front of this small screen.

But now, I put on the consumer hat, and see how we spend the time that we pass in front of our phones. And, at the same time I see some great advantages of using Smartphone applications, I also realize of some hazards when using them.

For example, WhatsApp is so useful and widespread that saves us from the insane charges for SMS messages⁽³⁾. But on the other hand, more that 1 billion messages are sent each day by this medium⁽⁴⁾, which means a huge amount of time spent texting someone that is not with us, and this is done many times accompanied by someone.

Many times we have the impolite habit of using our Smartphone apps when being with other people, this commercial (that surprisingly comes from a Mobile Operator) shows how all this takes a toll on us.

By far, most used apps are Social Networks and games⁽⁵⁾, which means that the time while going by train or bus, that we used to spend on reading, studying or just reflecting on our lives, now we use is to play Angry birds or look pictures and comment of “friends”.

Research shows that Facebook is the most popular Smartphone app among Android users in the U.S.⁽⁶⁾ (and I think probably in the rest of the world as well). That is, being all the time in front of our computers “connected” with our friends is not enough? How often we don’t meet in person with our friends because we “don’t have time”?

Technology should be a weapon to enjoy more our lives, not to become zombies that live through it. This is the main thought of the new movement “SMART-use-of-the-PHONE”, an initiative to support the responsible use of Smartphones and apps, making the best of all its potential but refusing to waste our lives looking to a phone screen. We all should think about it.

(1)- http://www.vecdis.es/?p=1664 (Spanish)

(2)- http://conversations.nokia.com/2011/02/01/build-up-your-appitype/

(3)- http://gearburn.com/2011/09/whatsapp-rocks-and-will-kill-sms/

(4)- http://www.bgr.com/whatsapp-users-send-over-1-billion-messages-each-day/

(5)- http://www.marketingnews.es/noticia/estudio-usuarios.html (Spanish)

(6)- http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/?p=30327&_4ee1215729884