Update on MINE magazine

A couple months ago I wrote about MINE magazine (see blog entry here) and its unique approach for repurposing content, packaging it with an advertiser's message, and re-distributing it to readers.  MINE recently won two awards at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.

I've received about half of my 10 issues of MINE magazine in the mail now, and I have to say I'm pretty impressed.  It's an interesting mix of content.  When I was first signing up for it, I thought the variety of content from such a wide range of magzines seemed random.  But it's really not that different from a mix of different types of music on an iPod.

The other thing about MINE that's impressed me is the advertising.  Each of the four Lexus ads that appear in the magazine are personalized, using the information I provided at registration.  Some of these ads include my name, my city of residence, or a couple of the interests I specified on the reg form.  It feels a little strange to see this kind of personalization in print -- we're used to seeing web ads with this level of personalization, but print ads usually don't go to this level.  But it's done tastefully -- and I feel like it's boosted my impression of Lexus as a brand that's interested in my needs.

If a printed magazine (long perceived as being slow or unable to keep up with online campaigns' personalization and targeting) is getting this customized, what's your excuse for implementing more customization in your online campaigns?

Great viral video about the media transformation

Old media companies that can't make the digital transformation are doomed.  Here's a wonderful viral video that was posted to YouTube last week.  I don't need to add much more -- the song pretty much sums it up.

How would you prefer to be contacted?

When collecting contact information on an online form, doesn't it make sense to ask the person for their preferences?  It seems like common sense, but at least 90% of the forms I see don't have that type of option.

Here's an example.  In the world of trade magazines, qualifying and re-qualifying subscribers is a major business expense.  Some trade publications spend more than a million dollars a year making calls, sending direct mail and emails, doing cover wraps on their magazines, and doing co-registration to reach their circulation goals.  Once you have a subscriber's name on your file, you have to re-qualify them every so often, to make sure they're still at the same place and to update their info.  But most trade publications don't bother to ask you how you'd like to be contacted for circulation renewals.  They just start sending you emails, or making phone calls, or sending you direct mail pieces until you renew.

In the 9 years I've been in trade publishing, I've never seen a requalification form as smart (yet simple!) as this one from Website Magazine.  After you change/verify your contact info and purchasing influences, you're taken to this screen where you specify how you'd like to be contacted for circulation renewals.  They provide all sorts of options, from email to text messages and calls on your mobile phone, to an alternate email address, business phone, and a postcard.  Plus they even give you a text box to include your comments or additional information.

It's simple, effective, personal, and user-focused.  It probably saves them a ton of money.  Why don't more websites do this?

Take control of your name in search results

As college graduates prepare to enter one of the toughest job markets in modern times, not only do they need to worry about the normal job seeking advice like keeping their resume short, writing a good cover lettter, never showing up to an interview late, etc.  But now they might need to Google bomb themselves, as Avelyn Austin points out in this excellent post.  Facebook pictures, YouTube videos, or other incriminating evidence might make an employer think twice about hiring you.  Some job seekers may employ the Google bomb tactic (basically trying to manipulate the search engines so more flattering results appear on the first page).

Google itself has come out with a new tool that might help people take more control of their identities online.  Called Google Profile, it lets you "control how you appear on Google and tell others a bit more about who you are."   Google claims that with a Google profile, "you can easily share your web content on one central location. You can include, for example, links to your blog, online photos, and other profiles such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and more."

It will be interesting to see how well Google Profiles rank in Google.  Will a search on a name turn up a Google Profile in the top few results, on top of the Facebook and LinkedIn results that now dominate many name searches?  If so, this might be an excellent way for people to give the world a more organized view of themselves within search results.  Google Profile might be an easier alternative to buying a domain name for yourself and setting up your own website to serve as a hub for your online identity.  (Personally, I'll stick to www.michaelmadej.com as the center of the brand that is myself, but I can see how many people might not want to go to that extra effort.)

I spent a few minutes adding my own profile to Google Profile, just to see how well it works and what kind of information it asks for.  At this point it appears to be pretty sparse, but in time I have a feeling they'll be adding more to this tool.

I still think back to this Wall Street Journal article from a few years ago, about parents picking names that will be easily findable in Google.  Maybe none of this naming stuff will be an issue when these kids grow up though -- perhaps search will be so advanced (or so integrated into everything else we do) that a unique name won't be necessary for Google results.  In reality, I think names will matter less and less as the technology gets smarter at pegging exactly who you are.