Search Engine Ethics

I’ve mentioned several times over the last few weeks that I’m new to this whole technology thing. I never even thought about how search engine companies (the most popular being Google and Yahoo) stay in business, I just knew they did. I assumed it was through advertising, but I never dwelled on their existence. A few weeks ago, I learned that many companies pay for placement on search engine web sites. I’m not the only one (thankfully) as I also learned that 60% of Americans are not aware of this practice. So basically, when I enter “West Virginia University” into Google’s search engine, the University’s web-site is not the first site listed on the results page. Some company selling football paraphernalia is listed at the top of the list under a small heading “sponsor results.” This means that some company pays for placement at the top of the results page and the site I’m actually looking for, is forth on the list.

Now this isn’t a problem, as I know that wvu.edu is the web site for West Virginia University, but what if I’m Christmas shopping and looking for Hannah Montana paraphernalia? If I get over one million results, rest assured, I’m not going to look through all of them. Several companies, who pay money to the search engine site, will be listed at the top of the results. Those are the ones I’m going to look through, not number 649,278 on the list. But what if the results at the top of the page do not have the best selections or the best deals? Is it fair to me to put a company at the top of the list which is not offering the best? Often the companies at the top of the results list are affiliated with the search engine company (same parent group). Is this fair or objective?

Now if consumers are aware of this practice, then I see very little issue, but 60% of Americans are surfing the web with no knowledge of this? Is that ethical? If not, who is being unethical, the search engine company or the advertising company? Are they both to blame? Please let me know how which side of this argument you fall on.

iPod Virgin

Two days ago, my very good friend gave me an iPod shuffle as a Christmas gift. I think I mentioned when I started this blog that I’m pretty technically challenged. I’ve never used an iPod before and…well I’m challenged at this also. I read the brief instructions that came with it, but to no avail. I thought I had it all set up, but it is still not working. So, I’m venturing on-line to see what advice Apple has for me.

This site allows you to choose which product for which you want instructions and then links you to an extensive instruction manual. The manual still didn’t give me clear instructions, but after playing around for awhile (about 2 hours) I finally have it up an running. I think the lack of instructions included in the iPod itself is part of a marketing plan to drive users to the Apple site and make additional purchases.

I have an extensive CD collection and doubt that I will end up making many purchases from iTunes, but you never know what I may find as I continue emerging into the field of new media. I’m still a virgin to many forms of media, but I’m exploring…and learning!

Internet Privacy

As Christmas quickly approaches, my husband and I recently decided to do our Santa shopping on-line. We found better deals than in the stores and it let us shop without having to find a sitter. As we were completing our purchace, I realized that I already had an account set up through Amazon and they had stored my information. I had made the purchase without having to enter any additional information. Actually, I completed the transaction without even realizing it! That was somewhat of an awkward feeling. Now, I’m not paranoid and I don’t believe, that Big Brother is watching my every move, but it does leave me with some questions regarding my privacy on the internet. How long do Amazon and other companies store my information? What happens if I want to pay with a different credit card? What if I were helping a friend shop and not intending to pay for this myself? Where was the link to change my information? None of these things even seemed to be taken into consideration. Thankfully, all went well, but next time I will be more careful before I click the “next” link on any Amazon sponsored page!

Web Design

Until recently I never realized all the work that goes in to designing a web site. I was recently given the assignment to design a web site, basically from scratch. OMG! as the teenagers would say. I’ve never been so intimidated. What a responsibility! Not only do you have to know what you want it to look like, but also how you want it to work or should I say how your users want it to work; what makes it user friendly. Also, you have to remember to have all pertinent information included, about your company and your brand. There’s also the responsibility of making sure that your web site is findable on search engines. After all this, it still has to be maintained…almost daily, or the information will be out of date! Wow! What a job! Glad that’s someone else’s responsibility where I work!

The Best of Both Worlds (The non-Hannah Montana Version)

My husband had brain surgery about a year and a half ago. Since then, he tires out more quickly and is less likely to stay up past 10:00 p.m. and watch some of his favorite shows. We currently do not have DVR, so he was debating the other evening between sleep and watching Dirty Sexy Money, a new favorite of ours on ABC. I reminded him of the ability to watch shows on-line and that it is usually quicker because of limited commercials. He said he had totally forgotten about that ability because he has never done that before. So dilemma solved. He can have the best of both worlds…sleep and smut. How wonderful is technology!?!?!

The Olivero Family

When I first went away to college I made friends with a girl who’s parents were Hispanic immigrants. I knew this, but didn’t realize how different our lives were until Thanksgiving. She lived about 9 hours away from campus and I was only 1 hour away from home. Since we only had a 4 day weekend, I invited her to spend Thanksgiving break with me and my family. She accepted and it was a typical visit until she called home. I overheard her speaking Spanish! After she got off the phone I inquired about her bi-lingual abilities which she had never shared with me.

She informed me that although her parents had immigrated to the U.S. in hopes of living the “American Dream,” they made the decision for her mother to stay home and raise their 4 children. Because Mrs. Olivero had never worked outside the home, she had never learned to speak English. In their home, Spanish was the spoken language, although Mr. Olivero and his children spoke English fluently at work and school. Until recently, I never even thought of how this would have affected Mrs. Olivero.

In many ways, Mrs. Olivero was a typical soccer (well actually volleyball) mom who lived in the suburbs outside Boston. They lived in a highly Spanish speaking suburb, but they were in the U.S.! How did Mrs. Olivero make decisions regarding which items to purchase at the grocery store? How did Mrs. Olivero decide which mini-van was best for her family? How did Mrs. Olivero know which pharmacy would best accommodate the needs of her family? Many of these decisions were probably made by marketing efforts put forth by various companies. I’m sure many of the places Mrs. Olivero did/does business has put effort into marketing to Hispanic speaking minorities. While the majority of the businesses in their area probably offers services which the Olivero family would find valuable, what Mrs. Olivero probably values most is the ability to be able to communicate. 

A pharmacist being able to speak Spanish would be invaluable in the time of a medical crisis. The peace of mind offered to a mother when she knows she is giving her child the correct medication, dosage, etc. is irreplaceable. Many companies are insuring this happens. Whether it’s a pharmacy, a cell phone company, or a hardware store, many companies realize that in order to expand and reach all the potential consumers who may be interested in their products, they have to reach out to minorities. This means more than simply translating information, but actually focusing on things which are important to various cultures.

Here are links to some company web sites which I feel do a great job marketing to minority consumers.

Fed Ex

Target

The Disney Channel

My space or MySpace?

I recently set up a MySpace account and was totally overwhelmed by all the personal information available on this site. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have never been one to spend much time with social networking, so I am trudging my way through this process. I have to admit though, I don’t really like it. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer e-mail. I know e-mail is not old fashioned…to my parents, but to my teenage babysitter and my college aged friends, it is archaic. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy getting to see what others (my friends from high school, etc.) are doing on occasion, but as far as me posting about all my personal information for others to see…I don’t see the point. My life seems pretty dull to put it in writing. I enjoy blogging much more; expressing my feelings through words and writing. I guess I enjoy my space…my own space; without the whole world knowing my business.

E-mail from…me?

Last night I received an e-mail from myself. I often send myself e-mails as reminders. But this was different. I didn’t send it, so I opened it out of curiosity. It was an advertisement for an on-line drug store out of Canada. Now how exactly does that work? Someone else sends me an e-mail using my e-mail address as the sender? Now I did block this sender from sending to my in-box again, but I wondered how it would affect my ability to send myself messages in the future? I checked and lucky for my forgetful self, it did not prohibit me from being able to e-mail myself.

I’m sure as I’ve surfed the web over the last few weeks, someone has attached a cookie to my computer as I now get several junk e-mails each day from people/businesses I do not recognize. I usually just junk these e-mails and block the sender from future e-mails. But an e-mail from myself? Is this an invasion of my privacy? Should someone be able to send me an e-mail using my own address, just to get me to open it? This idea really bothers me, but I am too busy to bother with it right now. If this continues, I WILL check into it in the future.

To children, or not to children?

As the holiday season approaches, my daughter has developed a case of the “I wannas.” Every commercial break on Nickelodeon is bombarded with ads for toys. She recently received not one, but two toy catalogs from JCPenney. Toys R Us also now has a catalog for the holiday season. She, like I did at her age, spends hours looking through the catalogs deciding what to tell Santa she wants under our tree on Christmas morning. She thinks we should take the catalogs to the mall, so she doesn’t forget anything when she sets on his lap.

Is marketing to children ethical? This is a common debate among marketing professionals. While children are often not the purchasers in their households, they do greatly influence their parents purchasing decisions. So how do marketers decide when to market to children and when to market to their parents? Without commercials on children’s channels, how would children know what toys are available? I guess parents could take children to the toy store, but what fun is that? I personally hate toy stores, so I would almost never go without my daughter requesting to go look for something she saw advertised on television. But television and catalogs are not the only ways marketers are targeting children. The Internet is full of advertising for children. Video games also have ads placed within them. So how do parents keep their children form being bombarded with ads? As a parent, I feel that it is my responsibility to monitor my daughter’s screen time.

So as a marketer, what are my responsibilities? Is my responsibility to market products or protect children? What about when marketing products such as fast food or sodas? Is this ethical? McDonald’s has started to market apples and milk in their Happy Meals instead of fries and soda. Does this make marketing to children ethical, or should McDonald’s forgo marketing of Happy Meals altogether? The very name, “Happy” Meal is a marketing tool. My daughter thinks my husband and I get “Sad” Meals, because we don’t get toys when we go to McDonald’s.

How do marketers walk the fine line of ethics when it comes to children? Do you think it’s ethical to market to children? If not, how do marketers of childrens’ products go about marketing effectively to parents? If it is ethical to market to children, should there be guidelines? What sort of things should be avoided? Let me know what you think.

Remember your manners, please?

Remember when people used to have private phone conversations? I remember my mom going into another room to talk on the phone when I was a young girl. I don’t think she was hiding anything, but she was being…I don’t know, polite?!?!? Nowdays you can’t go anywhere without seeing someone talking on the phone. Don’t get me wrong, I use my cell phone as much as anyone, but I try to do it as privately as possible. I do a lot of my phone calls in my vehicle while traveling. Most people have entire phone conversations in the middle of a crowded room and don’t care who knows their business. I’ve overheard people having conversations with their physicians about medical concerns and parents talking to their child’s teacher about problems in their classroom.

I’ve heard people talking while in the public restroom stall! HOW DISGUSTING! My mom works in a bank and complains about the tellers (her co-workers) talking on the phone while waiting on customers at the drive-thru window! How RUDE! I used to work retail and would be appalled at the customers who would never even speak to me because they were on their cell phones the whole time I was ringing up their transactions! The other evening, my husband and I went out to dinner. At the table next to us, another couple ate their entire meal while on the phone with other people! I’m not sure they even spoke to each other.

I learned in my class on Emerging Media that as technology advances and marketing goes mobile to mobile, more and more people are concerned about their privacy being invaded? REALLY!?!?! I can’t imagine the lady I heard discussing her medical test results is concerned about privacy…and the man I heard cursing at his child’s teacher? He allowed his privacy rights to be invaded in the middle of a crowded office!

Texting is another etiquette issue when carrying a cell phone. If you’re with other people, but spending more time texting someone not in the room, you’re being rude. At least excuse yourself! And do the same when making a phone call, not everyone wants to hear your business.

I think some people believe using a cell phone in a crowd makes them look important. Others just seem to have no consideration for others. While cell phones are a convenience, it’s impolite to burden others with your cell phone usage. I know I’m not the only one who believes that cell phone users are often rude! How about you? Have you been in similar situations? Tell me about them. Maybe we can educate others and develop some cell phone etiquette.

Who am I?

My name is Gwen and I was born in Barnesville, Ohio. Barnesville is a small town in eastern OH. I lived there until I graduated high school. I lived with my parents, Brent and Sue, and my younger brother Michael. My father has always been self-employed and my mother is in banking. My brother is eight years younger than me and spent his childhood playing baseball. He is now a chiropractor in the Columbus, OH area and is married to his wife Whitney. They are soon expecting their first child, a boy.

After graduating high school, I moved to the Parkersburg, WV area to attend Ohio Valley College. While at OVC, I met my now husband, Wes. We married after college and remained in the Parkersburg area. In 2002, our daughter, Anna, was born. She is now 6 and in Kindergarten. Wes is a psychologist and works for a community mental health clinic. Our family now lives in Belpre, OH, across the river from Parkersburg, WV. The three of us did do a one year stint in Hazard, KY while Wes did his internship for his PhD.

I currently work for West Virginia University Extension Service in their Family Nutrition Program. I teach nutrition classes to families with limited resources. I am also working toward a M.S. in Integrated Marketing and Communications through WVU. I am on target to graduate in July of 2009. My current goal is to continue working for the extension service upon graduation. I hope to promote to a higher salaried position though!

My B.S. from OVC is in psychology. Prior to working for WVUES, I spent several years working at various social service agencies in the Parkersburg area. I have worked in a day treatment program for mentally ill adults, done case management for children in foster care, and performed school social work for local school systems. I worked full-time until 6 years ago when Anna was born. After that, I went to work part-time, but plan to maintain full-time employment after completion of my M.S.

Gwen…Emerging

I’m taking a class called Emerging Media, but I feel like it should be called Gwen...Emerging. As I began earlier this week, I was feeling quite overwhelmed! There is so much to learn and only 9 short weeks. Just 4 days ago, I had never even heard of RSS Feeds or widgets and I only used the term blue-tooth as something to talk hands free on a cell phone. Now, I’m researching all sorts of tools and exploring a whole new media world.

As I explore these new media technologies, I am amazed at the ever emerging media which are being used to target various audiences. I remember the simple days; playing Pac-Man on an Atari game system, and Super Mario Brothers on our family’s Nintendo. We became entranced in a “cartoon-like” world for a couple hours each day with the goal of reaching the “next level”…hoping to do better than the day before. Now “gamers,” as they are called, enter a world not much different from our own…graphically anyway. Games have come to life. With a big screen, high definition TV it’s like watching a television show, only you write the story’s end with the controller.

THEN…I learn this week that companies actually advertise in these games?!?!? WOW! Talk about targeting a specific audience. What better way to embed an advertising message into a gamer’s mind than to place your logo in the landscape of their games? Not only would I never think of it, I didn’t even know it existed, but it IS perfect. Creating games is costly. What could be more cost effective than to charge another company to place its logo within a video game? And for the advertising company, it is a simple way to target especially 18-35 year-old men.

The things you can learn when you actually pay attention in class! I guess my parents were right…you do learn something new everyday!

From Paul to Anna…a Century of Change

My grandfather was born in 1901; my daughter, 2002. In 101 years, or 4 generations, technology has emerged in ways my grandfather could never have imagined. In the same respect, my daughter cannot fathom living in a world without cable TV, cell phones, or the Internet.

There are several disputed claims about radio invention. Regardless, radio, in some form or another, did exist when my grandfather was born in 1901. It continued to develop as a communication tool throughout his lifetime. He was around when televisions were invented. Growing up, I remember my grandmother telling me about their family having the first, and for a while, only television on their street. Neighbors would come over to watch. My dad remembers his family getting a big box floor model television in 1954. My dad bought his family’s first color TV when he got his first job in high school.

I remember in the early 1980s getting a second TV for our home. This was around the time I first used a very slow Apple computer…I was in 3rd grade. It wasn’t until the late 1980s that my family got cable. When I entered college, in 1992, I was just beginning to hear of the Internet and e-mail. After graduating college in 1996, I began actually using it…briefly. Now, I’m taking on-line classes and blogging. I carry a cell phone everywhere I go and the other day, when I thought I somehow erased all the numbers in my contact list, I nearly had a heart attack! Thank God for my teenage baby-sitter who was able to recover all my information.

My 6 year-old? She has been using a computer for well over a year! She can navigate her way through the Internet to play educational games or take care of her Webkinz. She can also find her way to Word and practice typing her name and phone number. Although she doesn’t have an actual account, she understands the concept of e-mail and we pretend to send letters to Miley Cyrus and Hannah Montana.

I wonder what Alexandar Graham Bell would think of text messaging. Do you think his creative mind even began to imagine it? The subject of emerging media has me thinking about how technology has changed over the last century. My grandparents initally used radio for communication. My dad’s main form of media communication has always been telephone and television. I use my cell phone and my computer as my lifeline to the world. I can only imagine how my daughter will communicate to her children and grandchildren when she is an adult.

To many people, radios and telephones are obsolete. We have become a generation of iPhones; all-in-one technology which allows for all forms of communication to be at our fingertips at all times. This also allows marketers to be at our fingertips, or in our faces, at all times. Our minds are constantly being inundated with marketing messages. As individuals we must decide if that is acceptable and monitor our own individual marketing invasion.

In our house, we need the occasional break. Time with no TV, computers, or cell phones. It is then that we turn on the radio…for a break. I guess that brings me full circle. My form of relaxation was front page technological news to my grandfather. What a century of change!

Radio vs. iPod/books vs. Kindle

With all the recent changes in technology, there is lots of speculation about older forms of technology becoming obsolete. With the popularity of iPods, will radio become obsolete? With the creation of Kindle, will books become obsolete? These are fears many traditionalists have regarding the evolution of media and technology.

Radio has been around for over a century. While its uses and functions have changed vastly, it still plays an important role in our lives and in society. In times of disaster, radio is going to continue being the lifeline to the world. Can you imagine a family trying to find a shelter with a hot spot to use the Internet for weather and emergency updates? iPods are great for downloading lots of information, but radio is a live lifeline to the world.

Television has also changed over the years. From broadcast to cable commercials have now invaded the television world. Although consumers now have the options of using DVR devices to avoid commercials, I think there will always be events, especially sporting events, which people will want to watch live. And what about all those big screen TVs? Does anyone think men are about to give up those? There is something mesmerizing about watching things on a larger than life screen which makes us feel like we’re part of the story.

I cannot imagine a world without books or libraries. The Kindle is an amazing device for travelers, but if there are no hard copies of the written word…it never existed…much like this blog. It is my opinion that books will always be the preferred form of the written word.

I don’t fear any form of technology becoming obsolete. I fear we will stop using these forms of technology to their fullest capacity. I worry marketers will get caught up in all the hype of new technology and forget about the original technologies which have been and will continue to be reliable in the future.

What are you doing?

One of my classmates mentioned recently about twittering. I had never heard the term before, so I decided to do some research. I learned through YouTube that twittering is a way to keep up with people you know throughout the day. Basically, you sign up for a twitter account and then several times a day you can log on. The site will ask you “What are you doing?” and you type it in. Then you can check to see what everyone else you know is doing. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!? WHO CARES?!?!?” Yes, when I call my husband. my mom, or others I tend to ask that question, but it’s more of a polite conversation starter. DO I REALLY CARE?!?!? Not so much! This seems like the craziest thing ever! I also have heard many other discuss facebook or myspace accounts. I have never been interested in either of these either, but as a student of emerging media I am willing to give these a try…to see what all the hype is about. But I need your help. Do any of you twitter? Do any of you have facebook or myspace accounts? Please let me know if you would be willing to learn and experiment with me.

Emerging Media and Politics

As I set here on the eve of the 2008 election, I am watching the 2008 Presidential Bash put on every 4 years by Saturday Night Live (SNL). As I watch SNL this evening, and many other evenings over the last few months, I am amazed that many of the candidates have appeared on comedy shows as part of their campaign strategies. Both Sarah Palin and John McCain have appeared on SNL in the last few weeks. Barack Obama appeared recently on The Daily Show.

I can’t help but think back to the days when other candidates like John F. Kennedy and Herbert Hoover were campaigning for presidency. It’s hard to fathom these gentlemen poking fun at each other and American issues or ideals. These candidates probably didn’t make fun of themselves either. I’m quite sure Abraham Lincoln did not poke fun of the slaves and slavery when he was encourging Americans to vote for him.

So what has changed? Why are today’s candidates willing to go on television and highlight their flaws in front of the entire country? Today’s America is so stressed and overworked that we want to laugh. We also want to relate to our politicians. We all have flaws and we can relate to someone who is willing to laugh at themself. Another reason these candidates are campainging on shows like The Colbert Report is because these are the shows their audiences are watching. Many younger Americans tune in to shows like these on a daily basis, but may never tune into the national evening network news with Katie, Brian, or Charles. These comedy shows are often the only way candidates have of reaching some voters. In short, these candidates appear on comedy shows because that’s what Americans watch!

Political campaigns are merely eternal marketing campaings and in marketing we learn that you go where the customers are and give them what they want. This is exactly what both campaingns are doing. I guess tomorrow we’ll find out who did it better.

This is 2008 people!

When I went to vote just 2 days ago, I was voting in a history making election. As a country, we voted the first non-Caucasian American into office. Even if you do not support Obama and his politics this country has come a long way. I must admit when this all started back in January, I didn’t think Obama could beat the Clinton’s or the RNC, so I am proud of my country because we are much less racist than I would have given us credit for eleven months ago.

But the election results are not my complaint. The actual voting process is my beef! I had to vote with pen and paper and fill in the little dots beside the name of my choice! This is 2008! How archaic can this process be? Just eight years ago we had to worry about hanging chads and all that hoopla, and we’re still doing things the old fashioned way…at least here in southeast OH. Across the river in Wood County, WV they do have electronic voting, but the County Clerk’s office still does hand counting of one precinct to confirm the accuracy of the voting machines.

There is cost involved with electronic voting. The machines are also heavy. They require printers and training, but it also saves paper and is much quicker than paper ballots. Over the last few months I have received numerous phone calls and e-mails from the candidates regarding the election. I have also been able to log on to my computer and read newspaper articles and blogs about the candidates. I heard people talk about receiving text messages encouraging them to vote. With all the technology we have today, I must admit I was/am offended that the actual voting process is not more up to date.

How about you? Do you like the traditional way of voting, or do you think it’s time to bring our election process into the 21st century?

Do we need paper for history’s sake?

With all this talk of new media and the abolition of old media, I wonder about the tracking of history? One of the first things I heard last Wednesday was people were flocking to purchase a copy of their local newspaper to have a piece of history after the election. If newspapers become obsolete, the Kindle replaces books, and iPods replace CDs, there is no longer anything tangible. I think there’s something neat about being able to hold on to something special; something historical. How do you feel? Are there some things you like to hold onto, or will the Internet be able to provide you and you family with all you need in the future?

Corporate Blogging

Bloggers have become the new word-of-mouth of marketing. By blogging, consumers can talk to others about their experiences world-wide. Good reviews or bad, blogging is the new way to spread the word. But what about corporate blogs? Can they be reliable? I realize they can be a marketing tool which says good things about a product, but isn’t that what advertising is? Isn’t that what companies do? They are already telling you all the good things about their product…at least if they have a good marketing team they are! So can official corporate blogs be trusted if the blogger is employed by the corporation? I checked out a couple corporate blogs to see how much objectivity could be found.

blog.toyota.com is Toyota’s official blog. It discusses not only the new vehicles which Toyota producing, but also lets the reader know about Toyota’s various PR tactics. There are categories about Toyota being green, their efforts to increase fuel economy, and ways the readers can improve the fuel economy of their vehicles, Toyota or not. There is a category about Toyota’s corporate responsibilities and also their community efforts. While each of these blog entries are written by Toyota employees and place Toyota in a positive light, readers have the option to post any complaints or disagreements.

I also found the blog for the new diet pill alli. This blog shares various stories about users who have been successful using their product. There are postings about how to make alli successful and how alli is compared to other diet drugs. This weblog seems to draw the attention of those using or contemplating using alli and allows them to provide and receive feedback. Other readers can post comments about their opinion of alli.

Neither weblog, nor others I have researched, had any negative postings or comments that I could find. This leads me to believe that just like other forms of marketing, official corporate blogs are part of a marketing campaign, not true unbiased comments about various corporations. Have any of you readers found any corporate weblogs which post any negative or unbiased comments? If you find any, will you please let me know?

Mobile to Mobile Marketing

There is an amazing phenomenon which marketers are using today; mobile to mobile marketing (M2M). Marketing can be done via text message to your cell phone or bluetooth technology which sends signals to your cell phone when you are near a specific location. This could be a welcome message or signal if it is coming from a marketer you have given permission to contact you, but what if not? Is it okay for marketers to contact your cell phone without permission? Telemarketers contact you home phone without permission, so why should your cell phone be different? Some believe that one of the benefits of having a cell phone is that telemarketers cannot contact you. Now, with so many people only using cell phones, this is the primary number given to companies who often contact consumers via telephone, so more and more telemarketing is done via cell phone anyway. But how about text messages and bluetooth signals? Should companies send these types of marketing messages without permission of the consumer? What do you the reader think? Can you think of any benefits of M2M marketing?