Volume 1 Issue 4: People's Lab Insights

Volume 1, Issue 4: October - December 2012

People’s Lab:
Crowdsourcing Innovation & Insights
People’s Lab is MSLGROUP’s proprietary comment on other people’s content and
crowdsourcing platform and approach that collaborate to find innovative solutions.
helps organizations tap into people’s insights
for innovation, storytelling and change. The People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform
and approach forms the core of our
The People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform distinctive insights and foresight approach,
helps organizations build and nurture public which consists of four elements: organic
or private, web or mobile, hosted or white conversation analysis, MSLGROUP’s own
label communities around four pre-configured insight communities, client-specific insights
application areas: Expertise Request Network, communities, and ethnographic deep dives
Innovation Challenge Network, Research & into these communities. The People’s Insights
Insights Network and Contest & Activation Quarterly Magazines showcase our capability
Network. Our community and gaming features in crowdsourcing and analyzing insights from
encourage people to share rich content, vote/ conversations and communities.

Learn more about us at:
peopleslab.mslgroup.com | twitter.com/peopleslab

Volume 1, Issue 4,
October-December 2012

Inside

Foreword 04
by Pascal Beucler

Editorial 05
by Gaurav Mishra and Nidhi Makhija

In India, Bloggers emerge as Influencers 07
by Ashraf Engineer

Snacking conversations in the United States 09
by Steve Bryant

Small
Nike 13 LEGO 27 Coke Zero
43 Business 63
FuelBand CUUSOO Unlock
Saturday
the 007

MTV Open
Fantasy 17 Ministry 31 The Beauty
47
Inside
Elections

Vicks Benetton
21 It Gets
Mobile Ad Unemployee 35 Better
51
Campaign of the year

Restore
the R
39 Intel IQ 55

Walmart &
Mattel’s Virtual 58
Toy Store

Pascal Beucler,
SVP & Chief Strategy Officer,
MSLGROUP

Foreword
I am delighted to introduce the fourth year-long endeavor to identify the ten
issue of the People’s Insights Quarterly most important frontiers that will define
Magazine, which pulls together the best the future of engagement for business
insights on social data, crowdsourcing, leaders and changemakers.
storytelling and citizenship from our
global network of 100+ planners. In 2013, we will continue to track inspiring
projects at the intersection of social
In the past year, we have written 52 weekly data, crowdsourcing, storytelling and
insights reports to curate the conversations citizenship, with a focus on projects in
around the most inspiring projects at the areas of education, learning and
the intersection of these four areas, and capability building; environment, energy
presented them to you, along with original and sustainability; health, wellness and
research from our network, in our quarterly nutrition; and happiness, kindness and
magazines. human potential.
Next, you can register to receive our Please feel free to write to me at
annual report titled Now & Next: Ten pascal.beucler@mslgroup.com to share
Frontiers for the Future of Engagement, your feedback on the magazine, or start a
to be released in mid-February as an iPad conversation on how we can help you win
app and a Kindle ebook. In this report, we in the areas of social data, crowdsourcing,
have synthesized the insights from our storytelling and citizenship.

Volume 1, Issue 4,

Editorial

Nidhi Makhija,
Manager - Insights,
MSLGROUP

Gaurav Mishra,
VP of Insights, Innovation & Social, Asia,
MSLGROUP

The People’s Insights Quarterly Magazine pulls People’s Insights Quarterly Magazine,
together insights from MSLGROUP’s Insights Volume 1, Issue 4
Network — a private network created on our
proprietary People’s Lab crowdsourcing platform In previous issues of the magazine, we have
— in which 100+ planners within MSLGROUP showcased original research and thinking from
share and discuss thought-provoking research our network on purpose-inspired transmedia
and inspiring projects in the areas of social data, storytelling, the transformation of healthcare in
crowdsourcing, storytelling and citizenship. Europe, and the role of social media in how food
brands are perceived and how moms make food
Every week, we pick one project from the decisions. In this issue, we share two original
MSLGROUP Insights Network and curate research reports: MSL Seattle on snacking
conversations around it — on the network itself conversations in the United States and 2020 MSL
but also on the social web — into a weekly insights on the perceptions of technology brands amongst
report. Every quarter, we present the thirteen Indian bloggers.
insights reports to you, along with original
research from our global network, as an online We also share thirteen case studies on inspiring
magazine. projects in the areas of social data, crowdsourcing,
storytelling and citizenship.

5

Social Data: Citizenship:

• How Nike is reinventing itself as a technology • How American Express created a shop small
company with Nike Plus and Nike Fuel movement with Small Business Saturday

• How MTV created a behaviour change game for • How It Gets Better created a movement to
the 2012 U.S. presidential elections inspire LGBT youth to share their stories

• How Vicks used search and social data to What’s Next
engage moms in areas with high incidences
of flu Next, you can register to receive our annual report
titled Now & Next: Ten Frontiers for the Future
Crowdsourcing: of Engagement, to be released in mid-February
• How LEGO is co-creating new products with its as an iPad app and a Kindle ebook. In this report,
customers at LEGO CUUSOO we have synthesized the insights from our year-
long endeavor to identify the ten most important
• How Open Ministry is enabling Finland to frontiers that will define the future of engagement
crowdsource new legislature for business leaders and changemakers.

• How United Colors of Benetton used In 2013, we will continue to track inspiring projects
crowdfunding to sponsor 100 youth projects at the intersection of social data, crowdsourcing,
storytelling and citizenship, with a focus on
• How Rainier Beer used crowdsourcing to projects that are shaping the future of education,
engage fans learning and capability building; environment,
energy and sustainability; health, wellness and
Storytelling: nutrition; and happiness, kindness and human
• How Coke Zero, Intel and Toshiba are using potential.
transmedia storytelling to create immersive Do subscribe to receive our weekly insights
experiences reports, quarterly magazines, and annual reports,
• How Intel is rethinking branded content with its and do share your tips and comments with us at
social curation platform iQ @PeoplesLab on Twitter.

Check out Issues 1, 2 and 3 of the People's Insights Quarterly Magazine here

Volume 1, Issue 4,

In India, Bloggers Emerge
as Influencers
For more than 15 years, 2012 Indian Bloggers Mindset
bloggers have used
the internet to express Survey
their views and spark Sample size: 90
discussions. However,
only in the last few Geography: All respondents were from India’s
years has the blog National Capital Region and were participants of
emerged as a powerful the Blogathon.
medium in India. What
Respondents: Bloggers from all domains – from
started as individual
technology and fashion to food and lifestyle.
indulgence has
There were also bloggers from unique categories
evolved into a highly
– for instance, a PowerPoint blogger and one who
interactive medium
blogs about blogging.
that influences mindsets, brand perceptions and
purchase decisions. Analysis: Respondents were categorised into
technology and non-technology specialisations
since preliminary research showed that there are
many who blog solely about the former.
Key findings
The survey reflected current trends as well as
sites and brands that are fast gaining popularity.
The top three brands thought to engage best with
audiences were all from the technology sector.

» Dell and Samsung – in that order – engage
with bloggers the most, said respondents
Photo from Thomas Hawk on Flickr
» Facebook and Twitter are the preferred social
Smart marketers recognise this and are engaging platforms on which to connect with bloggers
professional bloggers – as seriously as the » Excluding Facebook and Twitter, Google+ is
traditional media – as part of their brand-building Indian bloggers’ preferred social network
and promotional strategies.
» Pinterest is catching up fast
In some ways, blogs are a social commentary and
» Most bloggers believe that no social network
therefore act as an attractive tool to engage with
can beat Facebook, in terms of number of
the audience. In this age of digital media, where
users, in the next five years
everyone wants to have their say, brand managers
are increasingly becoming aware of blogs’ » Most views for blogs are directed from
immense potential. Facebook, followed by Twitter and then
Google+
Keeping this in mind, 20:20 MSL partnered
with Blogathon India to conduct a survey on » Digital campaigns for corporate social
what bloggers feel about brands, blogging and responsibility were the most recollected
industry trends. » Actor Aamir Khan is bloggers’ favourite brand
ambassador
Blogathon India, along with 20:20 MSL,
organised the first edition of the Blogathon on » Flipkart is the top e-commerce site for
May 26, 2012. Bloggers across specialisations bloggers; 39% ranked it the highest, followed
come together to celebrate the craft, and the by eBay (10%) and Yebhi (6%)
event became a platform for brands to interact » Samsung Tab and Canon DSLR – apart from
with them. The 2012 Indian Bloggers Mindset all Apple products – are bloggers’ most
survey was conducted at the event. desired gadgets
7

Most respondents said they spent less than five If you leave out Facebook and Twitter, Google+
hours blogging every week. It was technology emerged as the most preferred social network
bloggers who spent the most time practising their among technology bloggers. Non-technology
craft – 30% spent more than 20 hours every week bloggers seemed to be more experimental and
on it – while only 14% of non-technology bloggers spent their time on various other networks.
spent more 20 hours on their blogs. Some
technology bloggers spent more than 40 hours Aamir Khan (18.8%) enjoyed a strong lead over
per week updating their posts. Most bloggers fellow actor Amitabh Bachchan (11.8%) as the
(44%) accessed the internet from their phone leading brand ambassador. Cricketer Sachin
and/or tablet for more than six hours per day. Tendulkar (11.5%) and actor Shah Rukh Khan
(10.5%) came next. With three of the four most-
When it came to brands getting in touch with preferred brand ambassadors being actors,
bloggers, Facebook (30%) followed by e-mail it seemed that the Bollywood bug had bitten
(29%) led the pack as preferred modes of bloggers too.
communication. The preference for Twitter (16%)
over SMS (14%) was marginal. Clearly, non- In terms of youth appeal, bloggers pointed to
technology bloggers preferred traditional means Samsung as the top brand. An equal number of
(read: e-mail) of contact. tech and non-tech companies were in the top 10
list of Indian brands with youth appeal. Among
the cola majors, Pepsi had an edge over Coke.
Through this survey, we have insights into how
the Indian blogger thinks with regard to products,
technology and the medium. Few marketers can
today afford to ignore these powerful voices.

View The 2012 Indian Bloggers Mindset Survey Report on Slideshare
Volume 1, Issue 4,

Why Hostess Lacks
the Mostest
Steve Bryant gives (Will the miracles of modern convenience ever
his take on the recent end?) Could life be any simpler?
demise of an iconic
American snack The answer, Hostess can vouch, is resoundingly,
company, Hostess. yes.
Founded in 1930, A nice piece of buttered and jammed toast
the company was takes — what? — three to five minutes? That
ubiquitously known for could once have defined convenience. Today’s
its brands like Wonder breakfast makers are more likely to put that
Bread and Twinkies. buttered toast and jam into a blender, squirt it out
What does the fall of the in bars, and wrap it in a shiny foil wrapper. Grab,
Hostess Empire mean go, eat on the way to work or school, and you’re
for the American, and done. No napkin required.
even the global, “snack-scape”?
Pocket bread, wraps and tortillas have served
up a similar fate for sliced bread, with sales
falling 11.3% from 2006 to 2011, according to
Symphony IRI. Rising whole grain bread sales
are a bright spot, but overall category weakness
has escalated consolidation in the bread business
(Hostess itself was built through consolidation).

But the real mourning these past few months is
all about Twinkies and their snacking kin. They
have well earned a place in the “Snacking Hall
of Fame,” but the world of snacking has changed
Photo from Christian Cable (nexus_icon) on Flickr radically since their introduction. Sure, you could
chalk up their fate to changing nutrition and
The possible demise of Hostess has played out
wellness concerns – but you’d be mostly wrong.
in the media as a tale of Twinkies, but the dollars
There is still an enormous market for consumers
and cents of the matter come down to two big
who don’t give a fig for healthy eating!
issues: the decline of the bread business and the
vast diversification of snacking. Here’s the daunting fact: Consumers have vastly
more snacking choices in stores these days. And
Bread took a serious blow in the low-carb decade
the competition is about to get fiercer, with nearly
and, despite a perception that “carbophobia”
every major food maker declaring snacks as a
is history, consumer enthusiasm for bread has
focus of growth initiatives. This new snacking
only partially recovered. If that sounds like
land grab is a response to the startling fact that,
today’s economy, the comparison is apt. While
according to The Hartman Group, about half of
the apparent cause of bread’s decline seemed
eating occasions are now snacking occasions.
obvious, another, more persistent cause was at
work: Changing lifestyles that have pushed to In the branded food and beverage PR business,
the extreme our definition of ready-to-eat. a large share of the communications work we
handle is introducing new items that appeal to
Picture June Cleaver. She whips out a ready-
evolving lifestyle needs of consumers. There’s a
made loaf of Wonder Bread. (It’s a wonder
reason: Consumers make dozens of food choices
she didn’t have to make it herself.) She pops
a day, and they welcome variety. Brands snooze,
the ready-cut bread – count that as another
they lose.
innovation – into her new-fangled toaster.

9

Photo from Sacred_Destinations on Flickr Why Study Snacking Conversations?

It’s true that brands have lately gained a lot of Snacking is big business. As Americans move
traction with communications that mine their away from three square meals to a “graze the
origin stories. “Fruits are found in the roots of day” style of eating, savvy food manufacturers
brands,” a colleague likes to say. However, this and foodservice operators are transforming food
brand excavation works best in illuminating a products and menu items to meet changing
brand’s enduring sense of purpose. needs. Consider the following:

Like others, I don’t think we’ve heard the death » Nestlé’s Lean Cuisine recently launched six
knell for Twinkies. The indestructible snack may snack SKUs, three flavors of spring rolls and
well live another day, just as Cracker Jacks are three vegetable dips with pita
still on shelf … last time I checked. But then,
» General Mills, maker of snacks such as Chex
that’s the problem. We have affection for the
Mix and Bugles, expanded further into the
oldies but goodies, but the growth is in options
category in February 2012 with its purchase
that are geared to the pace and demands of life
of tortilla and sweet potato chip maker Food
today.
Should Taste Good
In the latest twist, a court has ordered mediation
» Food trend experts offered Perpetual
and the sun may yet come out for Twinkies and
Snacking as a top prediction for 2012
Snowballs. Along other would be acquirers,
Sun Capital Partners has refreshed its offer for As food and nutrition communications experts,
the company, promising capital for innovation. the MSLGROUP North America Food and
Now we’re talking. What are the Twinkies of Beverage Specialty Unit team undertook
Tomorrow? Therein lies hope for the Twinkies of a deeper exploration into the always-on
Yesterday. conversation revolving around the snack trend:

Snacking Conversations in the United States » Which products and messages receive the
& Recommendations for Brands most media attention?

The MSLGROUP North America Food & » How does the story take shape in the
Beverage Specialty Unit recently published a blogosphere?
new study called Snacking Conversations in the
United States, which examines how traditional » To what degree does nutrition matter?
and social media cover the subject of snacking » Which areas are saturated and which have
and the key themes they tend to discuss. room to grow?

Volume 1, Issue 4,

We uncovered a robust conversation, largely
centered on healthy snacking strategies (with
one noticeable exception, the men’s segment)
and a wide variance of opportunities for brands
based on the category within the world of snacks.
Overall, we see a large amount of attention
within the traditional and social media spheres
on better-for-you snacking, i.e., snack products
that marry nutrition with the great taste that
consumers demand. View the in-depth findings of the study and the
team’s recommended actions for brands who
Findings want to join the conversation at
Themes and Their Subgroups At-A-Glance Snacking Conversations in the United States.

What do media also tend to mention in
conversation about snacking and families,
snacking and healthy, or snacking and flavor?

View Snacking Conversations in the United States on Slideshare

11

Nike
FuelBand

A wearable activity tracker FuelBand user mkloker commented:

In 2012, Nike introduced the Nike FuelBand – “For an average Joe - I like it. It provides constant
a wearable band that measures and displays feedback and motivation… Before I got one, I never
people’s daily activity – in a virtual metric called thought much about my activity level.”
NikeFuel – to inspire them to stay fit.
And self-trackers
The FuelBand also appeals to self-trackers,
making it easy for people to measure their
daily behavior and engaging them with visually
beautiful displays and metrics.

Source: nike.com

Journalist Jessica Stanley observed the need for
such a device:
“Just Do It’ is one of the best positioning statements
Source: nike.com
in the world, but customers started to change.
Don’t just say it, help us.” As journalist Jenna Wortham mentioned in her
review of the FuelBand:
Targets ‘everyday athletes’
“From the moment I wrapped the band around my
Nike targets the “everyday athlete” with the wrist, I was enamored with the idea of a device that
FuelBand, acknowledging that everyday activities could help me collect data about my habits and
contribute to overall well being, inspiring people behavior, so that I could try to improve them.”
to do more and giving people a way to measure
the actual contribution.

13

Helps make sense of data FuelBand user Roger Cheng shared his
experience:
People can sync their bands with their smart
phones and the Nike+ website to see the number “The color LEDs on the FuelBand serve as an
of steps taken, calories burned and NikeFuel extra crack of the whip: the lights move from red
earned over time. to green as you approach your daily goal, taunting
you to keep moving until you hit your mark. When
Alyson Shontel commented: I was a few hundred points away from the goal, I
spent the last hours of the night walking around
“The statistics are amazing. You can look at your
my apartment to boost my score (your Fuel score
activity by the hour, day, month or year.”
resets to zero at midnight).”
The app and website also double up as a social
Alyson Shontel wrote
network, connecting people to their friends and
also to members of the 7 million strong Nike+ “The mix of guilt and competition the FuelBand
community. makes you feel pushes you to make healthier
decisions.”

Gamification of fitness
The FuelBand makes fitness a game by
presenting people with a daily challenge and
rewarding them when they get closer to meeting
their goal, and makes daily activities and chores
fun.
Catherine de Lange commented:
“After using the bracelet for a couple of days, I
found it strangely addictive. Just wearing the device
compels you to take the stairs or walk, even clean
the floor - all those things we know we should do
but seem like a chore.”
Source: itunes.apple.com
Instant feedback - a powerful
By taking into consideration factors such as motivator
age, gender, height, type of activity and amount
of movement when calculating the NikeFuel, The constant monitoring of data also acts a
Nike gives people one single data point to look powerful motivator. Users found that the instant
at while analyzing their own activity and their feedback and a sense of progress helped bring
friends’ activity. about a change in their behavior and make them
become more active.
As Catherine de Lange commented:
Gaurav Mishra, VP of Insights, Innovation and
“Because the fuel currency is universal too, it Social Asia, MSLGROUP shared:
means you can link up and compare with friends.”
“I remember that the year I first bought a Nike+
Or, as blogger Christen Costa put it: shoe was the year I ran most regularly. The instant
“In short order, Nike Fuel is a calculation that feedback and the sense of progress was almost
allows everyone and anyone to compete regardless addictive. Then, I lost the sensor, and lost my stride.
of their sex, age and any physical predispositions.” “I bought a NikeFuel band a few weeks back and
I have seen my activity levels go up significantly
Acts as a constant reminder
since then.”
Ever present on the wrists of the owner, the
Alyson Shontel reflected:
FuelBand displays the amount of NikeFuel
earned for the day, and motivates people to meet “Realizing how inactive I was during certain hours
their daily goal. has made me more active in my spare time.”

Volume 1, Issue 4,
October-December 2012 Social data Nike FuelBand

Does it do enough for $150?
While most agree the FuelBand is a great
motivator, the FuelBand has its limitations and,
for the price, people feel it should include GPS
and a heart monitor and should be more accurate
in measuring activity.

Source: nike.com

Journalist Jessica Stanley observed Nike’s
domination of the fitness industry:
“So alongside products like shoes and apparel,
they’ve built an entire ecosystem.”

Other personal data tracking
products
Source: blisstree.com
As gadgets get smaller and smarter, self-tracking
CNET editor Roger Cheng summarized the becomes easier. Indeed, we are noticing a trend
limitations of the FuelBand: of innovative tracking devices designed to help
people change their behavior for the better.
“The Nike Fuel score is worthless to anyone who
doesn't have a Nike+ product, and isn't always
accurate. There's no way to measure distance for
specific runs, so it isn't useful for athletes or people
who train regularly. At $149, it's also pricey for what
it does.”
Several people shared this view, especially since
Omron pedometer’s come as cheap as $20, and
FitBit’s popular activity tracker is priced at $100.
Others however, believe the FuelBand delivers
on what it promises – it gets people moving. As Clockwise: Withings Blood Pressure Monitor, Withings Body Scale, FitBit
activity trackers, MyZeo Sleep Manager, Nike+ iPod
FuelBand user CPC08 commented:
“The app is great. I would love it to be more
accurate, but paying $150 for true motivation is
well worth it to me.”

Part of the larger Nike fitness
ecosystem
The Nike FuelBand is the latest addition to Nike’s
suite of fitness products, which includes not only
Nike’s apparel and shoe line but also tracking
products such as the Nike+iPod shoe tracker,
GPS watch and the Nike+ running app.

15

View this report directly on Slideshare

Volume 1, Issue 4,
October-December 2012 Social data Nike FuelBand

MTV
Fantasy
Election

What is MTV Fantasy Election? Jason Rzepka, MTV's senior vice president of
public affairs, hopes the game will “instill the
To educate and engage 18-29 year olds around habits of good citizenship among young voters,”
the 2012 U.S. elections, MTV launched Fantasy over a sustained period of time. He also said:
Election – a game in which players create teams
of politicians and track their performance in five “Being a savvy spectator won't be enough to win
categories - transparency, honesty, social media the game, he says. Players will need to keep abreast
engagement, civility and public opinion. of the latest news, register to vote via a streamlined
application on the Rock the Vote website and exert
Players lose or gain points based on their teams’ subtle peer pressure on their fence-leaning friends.”
behavior as judged by five independent websites
including PolitiFact.com and Project Vote Smart. MTV motivated players to stay engaged with over
3,000 prizes, ranging from $5 gift cards to the
grand prize – an all-expense paid trip for four to
the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards and $25,000
in cash.
The prizes are plenty, but so are the challenges
MTV faces in meeting its vision.

A step away from MTV “Choose or
Lose”
With few exciting jobs and growing debt, the
2008 election marked the year U.S. youth chose
but yet lost. As a result, MTV has moved away
Source: fantasyelection.mtv.com/ from its 20 year election slogan “Choose or Lose”
and created the new entity Fantasy Election.
How it works
Players and members of their leagues can
change their teams on a weekly basis and earn
bonus points by answering daily trivia, checking
in to televised debates on GetGlue and events on
Foursquare, and by reading news articles.

17

A better platform for political
discussions
Despite the youth’s tendency to over-share,
they tend to avoid political discussions on social
media. Bloggers point out the MTV Fantasy
Election may offer a better platform and also
spark more political conversations.
As L.A. Times journalist Rebecca Keegan noted:
“Hangovers, breakups, Katy Perry lyrics —
Source: nytimes.com millennials are notorious for posting information
online that older generations find either too
As Keith Wagstaff, writer at TIME Techland, personal or too trivial to share. But there is one
commented: topic where young people cry TMI — politics. At
“Why ditch MTV’s classic “Choose or Lose” motto? least that's what MTV found in a 2011 poll of some
Because despite the fact that more young voters of its 15- to 24-year-old viewers, only 36% of whom
turned out in 2008 than for any election since said they would post a political opinion on a social
1992, young people in this country face grim job media site…
prospects with $1 trillion in student-loan debt. In “To get millennials… thinking harder about the
other words, they chose and they lost, not exactly election, MTV has turned to a format the age group
an empowering experience for a first-time voter.” is very comfortable with — games.”

Lack of youth interest in 2012 Gamification to educate and
elections engage
Even with the new campaign, MTV faces a steep Bloggers commended MTV for using gaming
challenge – 45 million millennials (aged 18-29) techniques to educate young people about
are eligible to vote, but studies have found they politics and for making the subject more
are less enthusiastic and less likely to vote as accessible and interesting.
compared to 2004 and 2008.
A July 2012 Gallup poll found:
“Fifty-eight percent of U.S. registered voters aged
18 to 29 say they will "definitely vote" this fall, well
below the current national average of 78% and far
below 18- to 29-year-olds' voting intentions in the Source: gamification.co
fall of 2004 and 2008.”
As Gary Henkle pointed out:
The MTV Fantasy Election thus is very relevant
and serves a good purpose. As Govind, National “Fantasy Election ‘12 can definitely be used as a
Creative Director at MSLGROUP Creative+ and tool by student activists to bring their disengaged
member of the MSLGROUP Insights Network, friends on board. For any friend who says “I want to
commented: be more involved, but I don’t know how this works,”
this game makes discovery of the political process
“This [campaign] is really good. Sensitizing more fun than a didactic civics lesson, and as
disinterested youth so they get involved in the mentioned brings awareness in less time.”
electoral process!”

Volume 1, Issue 4, MTV Fantasy
October-December 2012 Social data
Election

Fast Company contributor Lydia Dishman praised
MTV for its mature and intellectual approach to
creating political awareness:
“Rather than simply showcasing a pop star
wrapped in an American flag (hello Madonna!) and
calling it cool, Fantasy Election ’12 is attempting to
channel the intellectual core of political activism’s
heyday during the 60s and 70s.”

Is gaming an appropriate
approach?
Source: fantasyelection.mtv.com/
Several people however have criticized the
As AWM1983, a reader at Time.com, commented:
gaming approach: they do not believe that
gaming techniques should be applied to a matter “While I don't really care about earning points or
as serious as voting, and consider it a frivolous playing the game, I do like the idea of on going
waste of time. ranking system that takes multiple factors into
account. It is a shame that it has to stop with the
As JackiMaddie commented at CNN.com:
election. It would be great if they continued to track
“If it takes a video game to get someone to vote, and rank elected officials on honesty, campaign
I'm not so sure we want that person voting to begin promises, and lobbyist connections.”
with.”
Indeed, it was this skepticism of political claims
Another CNN reader, nelly0042 commented: that led to the ranking system. As Jason Rzepka
of MTV said:
“Considering that half of recent grads are
unemployed or under employed, they might be "Because of the skepticism of our audience, we
better off paying attention to that instead of some decided to use the game as an accountability tool."
fictitious game.”
Tracking candidates is hard work
CNN reader StopItB on the other hand embraced
the MTV Fantasy Election format as the ‘future of It is important for voters to actively tracking
communications: candidates’ claims and elections throughout
the elections season, and MTV generously
“I beg to differ here. I think this could be a rather offers plenty of incentives to keep young voters
successful venture if handled correctly. There engaged.
are many political discussions that occur on
Facebook… This is the future of communications. As Keith Wagstaff wrote:
It should be embraced rather than ostracized.”
“The idea is that while Millennials might not
venture to a host of dry political sites to keep track
Ranking tool helps combat of which politicians are disclosing funding sources
skepticism and making false claims, they might pay attention
if their Fantasy Election team loses points —
People have also applauded MTV’s innovative
especially if those points can lead to prizes like a
ranking system which helps voters digest the
trip for four to the Video Music Awards.”
overwhelming amount of information available
and focus on candidates’ performance in areas However, players have still found the effort
that matter. strenuous and hard to sustain. As dspringfield
commented:
“This thing is pretty exhausting. I hope it pays off.”
His sentiment is evident amongst the larger
pool of players. While ten thousand people have
joined the MTV Fantasy Election, MTV’s Rzepka
shared that “a lot of the audience is turning away”.

19

Can MTV convince youth to vote? At the very least, MTV believes it can help create
more informed and active citizens in the long run.
Bloggers acknowledge the need of reaching CNN journalist Gregory Ferenstein quoted MTV’s
millennials online, but question if gamification of Rzepka on this:
politics is enough to motivate millennials to vote.
“Even if MTV can't make Generation Y a huge
voting bloc, Rzepka believes the network can still be
influential.
"We're not going to solve the problems we face with
voting alone," he said. "If we as MTV can get them
[young citizens] when they're 18 and when they're
22, they are a long way on their way to being active
and informed participants in our democracy from
now on."”
Source: fastcocreate.com

As Keith Wagstaff said:
“Will it get young voters to turn out on Election
Day? It’s doubtful that the “gamification” of
politics is enough to counter the disillusionment of
moving back in with your parents or staring down
$100,000 in student-loan debt. Still, the days of
simply prompting young people to vote from a
rock concert are over; twenty-somethings expect
everything to be online — and that includes political
engagement.”

View this report directlya on Slideshare

Volume 1, Issue 4, MTV Fantasy
Election

Vicks
Mobile Ad
Campaign

Innovative ad targeting campaign The mobile experience
In early 2012, Vicks combined several layers of Moms received in-app ads which warned them
data to reach moms in high flu zones with mobile that they were in high flu zones and directed
ads for their premium Behind Ear Thermometer. them to the closest retailer. On clicking the ads,
Moms only received ads if they were within three moms were shown a video on the benefits of the
miles of a retailer selling the thermometer. thermometer.
Elyse Dupré, a reporter Direct Marketing News,
summarized the campaign:
"The mobile aspect of the integrated campaign
used three components to target its audience and
sent relevant messages. The first was demographic
criteria (e.g., experienced or expecting moms).
Second, the mobile system was set up to use the
Google Flu Trends index to alert moms when their
local flu levels were high. Third, the mobile system
used geo-targeting to provide customers with a
list of retailers selling the thermometer—such as
Walmart, Target, and Walgreens—and directions
within a 3-mile radius."

Source: nytimes.com

21

Matthew Arnold, who covers medical marketing “Google’s [Flu] Trends is based on a formula to
news online, wrote: estimated flue activity based solely on searches.
Google was able to do that by correlating flu-
“They see an in-app banner ad reading “FLU related Web searches with actual data from the
LEVELS IN YOUR AREA ARE HIGH. Be prepared Center for Disease Control (DCD). By combining the
with Vicks' revolutionary Behind Ear Thermometer,” search keywords with the IP address of searchers
and “buy at Target .2 miles away.” Clicking on the which provides searchers’ locations, Google is able
banner takes them to a landing page with a store to estimate regional flu activity within a day of
finder, video and mobile site.” outbreaks compared to a week or two lag with CDC
reports.”
Layer 1: Google flu data
Google provides this data for states and countries
Vicks used Google Flu trends to find out which in North America, South America, Europe
areas were experiencing high incidences of flu. and also Russia, Australia and South Africa. In
Google uses search trends and IP addresses to addition to flu trends, Google also monitors
determine the locations, and provides this data dengue trends in Mexico and some parts of Asia
for free online. and South America.

Layer 2: Demographic data
Vicks was able to reach moms and expecting
moms through mobile apps such as Pandora
which collect user data including age, gender,
marital status and number of children.
Andrew Adam Newman, a journalist at New York
Times, noted:
"A mobile campaign by Blue Chip Marketing
Worldwide, which is based in Chicago, places the
ads for the thermometer within popular apps like
Pandora that collect basic details about users,
including their sex and whether they are parents,
and can pinpoint specific demographics to receive
ads."
Source: google.org/flutrends/us/#cities

Google explained the logic behind their analysis:
Layer 3: Location data
Vicks used real-time data from location based
"We have found a close relationship between how mobile advertising network Where to target
many people search for flu-related topics and moms when they were within 3 miles of a
how many people actually have flu symptoms. Of closest retail store that stocks the Behind Ear
course, not every person who searches for "flu" is Thermometers.
actually sick, but a pattern emerges when all the
flu-related search queries are added together"
Dr. Robert Brecht, a specialist in healthcare
marketing, explained how the raw data was
validated and made accessible:

Source: site.where.com

Volume 1, Issue 4, Vicks Mobile
Ad Campaign

Melissa Hoffmann noted:
“[Where] has the geolocation technology necessary
and the ability to tap into Google's flu trends to
properly target the ads.”

Highly relevant proposition
Thinkers point out that the ad campaign is highly
relevant as it reaches only moms that meet all
the targeting criteria and at a time when they are
most likely to make the purchase.
As Andrew Adam Newman pointed out, “ not all
mothers will see the ad on their smartphones. "
Dr. Robert Brecht highlighted the “real time”
factor, and noted that mobile ads are a great way
to reach moms:
"Mobile marketing is an important tactic to reach
moms because of their reliance on smartphones
to help them multi-task to balance the many
demands of their hectic lifestyle."
Michael Johnsen, who covers medical marketing
news, wrote: View the full Privacy Infographic – June 2011 (Survey respondents from UK,
Spain, and Singapore) at gsma.com

“The ad targets users who arguably have a
higher need for the product — a factor that would Patricia Kosseim, General Counsel, Office of the
presumably increase the purchase intent with that Privacy Commissioner of Canada, addressed this
branded call to action. issue in her keynote speech at an
ethics conference earlier this year:
The targeting options did indeed have an effect
on the ad performance. Sarah Van Heirseele, VP "[The Vicks] example gives rise to yet another range
of digital at Blue Chip which ran the campaign, of ethical issues having to do with the privacy of
shared: app users in this case -- whether they were aware
that their personal information would be used for
“Click-through rates during the soft launch
targeted ads by third parties and whether they were
period are more than double what was originally
given meaningful opportunity to opt out of it…
anticipated.”
"Many of the online practices we see rely on the
Privacy is a rising concern assurance that the information aggregated,
Marketers and healthcare specialists predict that used and/or disclosed to third parties is non-
the increasing power and possibilities of targeting identifiable. However, given the scope and scale of
options will lead to a widespread debate on the information collected, the powerful means now
protection of privacy and call for newer and more available to combine and analyze disparate pieces
relevant laws. of data and the increasingly personalized nature
of targeting strategies, there will often be a serious
possibility that information could be linked to an
individual."

23

Targeted ads are “creepy” “The use of big data will become a key basis of
competition and growth for individual firms. From
Thinkers point out that targeted ads and location- the standpoint of competitiveness and the potential
based ads can creep out consumers, and that capture of value, all companies need to take big
campaigns should be designed to appear less data seriously... Indeed, we found early examples of
targeted to avoid ‘spooking out’ consumers. such use of data in every sector we examined.”
In a blog post on Redefining Privacy: Mobile’s Several of our previous case studies show how
Privacy Challenges, Brian Morrissey, editor at media companies and brands are using big
Digiday, wrote: data and social data to cover politics
“People carry their phones everywhere, storing (CNN I’m Voting app), to engage and educate
pretty much their most sensitive information on youth (MTV Fantasy Elections) and to cater to
them, making the prospect of location-tracking self-trackers – people who like to measure and
scoring very high on the “creepy” scale that visualize their activities (Nike FuelBand).
seems to govern whether issues become privacy
controversies.”
New York Times report Charles Duhigg came
across the same issue when covering retailer
Target’s use of data to identify expecting
mothers and send them tailored product
recommendations. He quoted a Target employee,
who said:
“With the pregnancy products, though, we learned
that some women react badly… Then we started
mixing in all these ads for things we knew pregnant
women would never buy, so the baby ads looked
random…And we found out that as long as a
pregnant woman thinks she hasn’t been spied
on, she’ll use the coupons. She just assumes that
everyone else on her block got the same mailer for
diapers and cribs. As long as we don’t spook her, it
works.”

Big Data
Big Data has been receiving an increasing amount
of attention in recent months, as the amount
of data captured increases and brands become
more data savvy.
In May 2011, the McKinsey Global Institute
released the report “Big data: The next frontier
for innovation, competition, and productivity,” in
which they noted:

Volume 1, Issue 4, Vicks Mobile
Ad Campaign

View this report directlya on Slideshare

25

LEGO
CUUSOO

What is LEGO CUUSOO?
In 2011, LEGO opened up its Japanese
crowdsourcing platform CUUSOO to global
audiences, inviting adults to submit and vote for
new LEGO product designs. There are currently
3,787 live projects at LEGO CUUSOO. Three co-
created products have been launched to date,
and a fourth one is in production.

Source: techhive.com

As Levent Ozler, editor-in-chief of Dexigner,
summarized:
“Ideas that are supported by 10,000 votes have
a chance of being selected to become part of the
LEGO Group's product portfolio and sold in LEGO
Brand retail stores and the LEGO online shop.
Consumers who have their ideas chosen will earn
1% of the total net sales of the product.”
Maxine Horn, advocate of safeguarding
intellectual property, commented:
“Lego are certainly an inspiration and what I love
about their new move is that, unlike others using
Source: lego.cuusoo.com
their customer base to inspire innovation, they set a
challenge and are prepared to share in the revenues
How does it work? of anything they take forward.”
Ideas that clear an initial review and People can submit their own projects and can
receive10,000 votes are formally evaluated by a also collaborate with other members of the
LEGO product team for Brand Fit, Business Case LEGO CUUSOO community (Guidelines for
Development (and license agreements), Model Collaborative Projects). People must be 18 to
Design and Final Review. submit ideas and 13 to vote on ideas.

27

This video explains the LEGO CUUSOO review Speed of innovation
process.
With LEGO fans eager to see the products they
voted on in stores instantaneously, LEGO has cut
down its typical product release cycle from two
to three years to as little as six months with the
Minecraft project.
Matthew Kronsberg, writer at Fast Company,
pointed out:
“The first Cuusoo project--the Shinkai--took 420
days to accumulate enough votes to trigger a
review (only 1,000 were needed for the Japan-
Source: LEGO® CUUSOO Process and Summer Review Results only project), while Minecraft, with its 20 million
registered users, racked up 10,000 votes in just 48
Challenges the LEGO business hours.
process
“Such an outpouring of interest would be
Fan submitted ideas undergo the same scrutiny squandered though, if that consumer desire
as internally developed ideas, and have pushed was left to wither through a traditional product
LEGO to consider new partnerships to bring development cycle. And this is where the second,
projects to life. For instance, LEGO partnered and possibly more significant piece of the Cuusoo
with Mojang, creators of the popular video game endeavor comes into play: Lego Minecraft will go
Minecraft, to produce the Minecraft set. from concept to release in roughly six months,
rather than Lego’s typical two- or three-year
process.”

Staying relevant and constantly
innovating
LEGO enthusiasts point out that LEGO’s agility
and determination to staying relevant to changing
demographics has helped turn the company
around and establish a strong fan base.
As LEGO enthusiast and CUUSOO reviewer
Source: lego.cuusoo.com
GlenBricker said:
The LEGO CUUSOO process has also resulted in “At one point a few Years ago Lego almost went
LEGO standing by brand guidelines and rejecting bankrupt. Now they are a multimedia empire…
projects that were not an ideal fit. Ideas have Lego is doing a great job staying relevant to a
been archived for being inappropriate for young changing demographic who has a constantly
audiences (The Winchester - Shaun of the Dead), expanding field of entertainment opportunities
for being too costly to produce (Legend of Zelda available to them.
set of characters) and due to barriers in obtaining
the license from original copyright holders “Sure, it is far from an instantaneous process but
(My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic, a property more and more we expect or entertainments to
owned by competitor Hasbro). conform to what we want rather than us to conform
to what is available.”
In a blog post, LEGO stated:
“Opening ourselves to new product suggestions Power of crowds
invites popular ideas that don’t always fit our brand. Digital enthusiast Luis Remelli Beerbower noted:
This is the first time we’ve felt that we should turn
a LEGO CUUSOO idea down, but we’re grateful for “LEGO has many reasons for crowdsourcing:
the spirit behind projects like the Winchester and for engaging their customers, accurate estimation,
the opportunity to be challenged. It keeps us sharp customer needs, spotting trends, and seeing in first
and looking toward the future of the LEGO brick.” hand market potential for each product.”
Volume 1, Issue 4, LEGO
October-December 2012 Crowdsourcing
CUUSOO

In the words of Fast Company’s Matthew
Kronsberg, AFOLs are “small, all but invisible
demographics, but taken in aggregate, colossal.”

Source: bturn.com

Crowdsourcing is beneficial to brands in several
ways. In a Tedx Talk, Dwayne Spradlin, CEO of
innovation platform Innocentive, highlighted the Source: AFOL A Blockumentary via fastcompany.com
primary advantage:
AFOLs are connected offline through local
"What we have created are systems where we
Lego User Group chapters, meetups and brick
build large facilities and large buildings full of
conferences, and through online LEGO platforms
the researchers that we think can solve the most
like CUUSOO and ReBrick, a social bookmarking
important problems. We hire the best in the world
site for adults to share and discuss user
to work on those problems, but we all know the
generated LEGO content.
fundamental limitation of that kind of system. We
couldn’t hire all the smartest people in a given field
if we wanted to, we can’t.”
Co-creating the next generation
of products
The CUUSOO model also helps individual ideas
stand out and enter the spotlight. As Peter The passion people show for co-creating
Esperson, Lego’s Online Community Lead said: and shaping products around them, and the
technology to harness their creativity and
“If we got all the Lego designers, and probably feedback has lead to the new generation of co-
even all the fans in the same room and discussed created products we are seeing today, with LEGO
what it was we should make, and put it to a vote? CUUSOO and other brand initiatives such as
It probably would not have been the Shinkai Philips Simply Innovate.
[submarine]. But some guy in Japan decided he
wanted to do this, and he tapped into the deepwater In a 2009 Forrester report “Future of the Social
marine biology community and then it happened.” Web”, Jeremiah Owyang predicted the role
communities would play in the creation of new
CUUSOO’s 10,000 vote requirement also helps products:
streamline the crowdsourcing process. As the
Idea Connection team noted: “Socially connected consumers will strengthen
communities and shift power away from brands
“Lego receives original ideas but is not weighed and CRM (customer relationship management)
down by too many which can be costly and time systems; eventually this will result in empowered
consuming to examine. And fan support can communities defining the next generation of
provide some kind of indication of the potential products.”
popularity of a concept.”
Indeed, the last few years have seen a rise in
Targets AFOLs (Adult Fans of consumer facing crowdsourcing and collaborative
programs and the emergence of a strong DIY
LEGO) culture and technology driven maker sub-culture.
CUUSOO caters to the adult LEGO fan base,
a sizable population of people with a shared
passion for and expertise in building things.
Participants of CUUSOO include professional
designers and engineers.

29

Chris Anderson, former editor-in-chief of Wired
and author of the book Makers – The New
Industrial Revolution, believes technology is
responsible for this new maker movement:
“The real revolution here is not in the creation of
the technology, but the democratization of the
technology. It’s when you basically give it to a huge
expanded group of people who come up with new
applications, and you harness the ideas and the
creativity and the energy of everybody.”

LEGO co-creation ecosystem
Source: cnet.com
LEGO nurtures the spirit of creation amongst
adults and children alike with digital tools such Joren de Wachter, an IP strategy consultant,
as LEGO Digital Designer and LDraw to create noted:
products with a virtual supply of LEGO pieces,
and social networks such as LEGO Club and “The genius of Lego is to embrace and share that
ReBrick that foster knowledge sharing, content creativity, rather than trying to own it.”
sharing and discussion.


Volume 1, Issue 4, LEGO
CUUSOO

Open
Ministry

What is Open Ministry? This approach empowers citizens to have a say
in their governance, and more. Science and
In March 2012, the Finland Citizens’ Initiative Act technology writer David Hill pointed out:
went into effect, giving citizens the right to
propose legislation to the Finnish Parliament. To “More than that, Finnish voters can back an
facilitate this, a group of non-profit entrepreneurs initiative online rather than being physically
launched web platform Open Ministry. approached by solicitors. Not only does that
make it more convenient, but voters can study the
The platform supports a new era of open initiatives in more detail and research information
governance. As Journalist Susan Fourtané noted: before they sign up, something that is much harder
to do when someone is pushing a clipboard in your
“Today, companies are crowdsourcing everything
face to sign.”
from designs of cars to marketing slogans. Why
shouldn’t governments follow suit?”
Collaborative Social innovation
How does it work? The initiative involves collaboration both between
the government and the people, as well as
Through the web platform, citizens can propose
among people, with volunteers running the
and vote on new legislature online. The proposed
platform and converting proposals into legal
legislation must gather support from 50,000
form.
citizens of voting age within six months to be
considered by the parliament. Journalist Susan Fourtané noted:
“In the meantime, The Open Ministry's team
has been actively working with organizers /
campaigners in planning the initiative campaigns
for the fall. A group of volunteers from different
professional backgrounds evaluate and select
proposals that citizens send through the Website.
Later, the final selection is passed on to volunteer
lawyers who draft the proposals into legal form and
terminology.”

Source: avoinministeraio.fi

31

CSR opportunity for brands Can crowdsourcing lead to social
Several banks and telecom providers have change?
supported the initiative by providing free access In October 2012, the first citizen-proposed law, a
to their verification APIs, thus enabling Open ban on fur farming, entered Parliament with the
Ministry to verify the identity of voters. This support 55,000 citizens. Thinkers are watching
partnership was crucial to the Open Ministry developments to gauge the success of the
being accepted by Finnish policymakers, and initiative.
provides brands an opportunity to support their
consumer’s passions.

Source: peopleslab.mslgroup.com

Revival of trust in government?
Thinkers believe that the transparency that is
inherent in Open Ministry platform can lead to
greater accountability for government officials
and increase of trust in officials. Source: gigaom.com

Stefaan Verhulst, an academic in law and
Matthew Ingram, a writer at GigaOm, pointed out:
communications, wrote:
“The laborious process of putting together a
“Finland’s program forces representatives to
comprehensive piece of legislation — which would
officially take a stand for or against proposals
require hundreds of pages, legal footnotes and
demonstrated to be important to a large portion of
cross-checking with existing laws if it is to succeed
the population.
in any real way — may simply not be compatible
“As such, Open Ministry could lead to not only with existing crowdsourcing methods”.
more immediate direct democracy, but greater
accountability for government representatives.” Do we need a new paradigm for
Joonas Pekkanen, founder of Open Ministry,
lawmaking?
shares similar views, which have been While some question if crowdsourcing can be
summarized by Good News Finland: effective in creating serious legislature, some
question whether the current definition of
“Open preparation and decision-making ensure
legislature is still relevant in today’s world.
that real causes and opinion leaders will be heard.
When the processing phases surrounding decisions Academic Stefaan Verhulst wrote:
and background documents are open to everyone,
trust in government officials and representatives “Despite the promise of crowdsourcing
will grow.” towards more participation, transparency and
accountability of the law-making processes several
challenges remain. More importantly, broader
questions exist on whether these efforts aim to fix
a process designed for a previous era or should go
beyond what we currently mean by legislation.”

Volume 1, Issue 4, Open
Ministry

Can Open Ministry work This shift in people’s attitudes is evident in the
number of open governance initiatives in Europe,
elsewhere? Brazil and even the U.S.
Thinkers highlight the progress of the initiative
to Finland’s open culture and history of
collaboration between citizens and government.
David Meyer, a writer at GigaOm, noted:
“Nordic countries tend to have relatively close
societies where people are enthusiastic about
pitching into civic life… Tech-driven democracy fans
in other countries may not find the environment as
conducive to crowdsourced legislation right now,
but on the other hand they just got themselves a
model to study.”
Clockwise: U.S.’s Petition White House, Latvia's Mana Balss,
Though the code for Open Ministry is freely Iceland’s Constitutional Council, France’s WeSign.it

available open source community GitHub, people
believe the initiative may fall victim to pranksters In France, WeSign.it allows people to create
if replicated elsewhere. Fruzsina Eördögh, writer petitions online. In Iceland, a Constitutional
at The Slate, noted: Council allows citizens to offer direct feedback,
re-write and vote on new proposed legislature.
“While Open Ministry may be spam- and hacker- In Latvia, Mana Balss (My Voice) enables citizens
proof, there are no signs that it is prankster-proof. to propose topics for politicians to debate.
Maybe the residents of Finland don't seem the type In Russia, WikiVote! enables citizens to write
to vote on bogus legislation, but the same can't the laws and vote on the different versions.
be said for citizens of the United States. In July of In Brazil, e-democracia enables citizens to
this year, two writers from the satire Internet site highlight issues, draft solutions and debate
Something Awful got more than 62,000 people with other citizens. In the US,
to like a Facebook page in order to “exile” rapper Petition.WhiteHouse.gov enables citizens
Pitbull to Alaska.” to highlight issues to the government. On a
corporate front, IBM Many Bills is a “visual tool
Other open governance initiatives explorer” that aims to simplify legislation for the
public.
People now call for an open democracy and
thinkers believe in a ‘writeable’ society.
In a TED Talk in June 2012, former U.S. Deputy
Chief Technology Officer Beth Noveck argues:
“…we live not in a passive society–a read-only
society–but in a writeable society where we have the
power to change our communities, to change our
institutions.”
Joonas Pekkanen, founder of Open Ministry,
observed the shift in people’s expectations:
“Citizens have begun to call for a more open,
transparent and participatory western democracy
in place of the old rigid system.”

33


Volume 1, Issue 4, Open
Ministry

Unemployee
of the Year

Fighting youth unemployment
Unemployee of the Year is a global initiative
from the United Colors of Benetton UNHATE
Foundation to create awareness around youth
employment and to fund 100 youth projects that
drive social good.

Source: unhate.benetton.com/unemployee-of-the-year

Crowdsourcing & funding
projects
Of these, 1,035 people uploaded projects that
would help their local communities in some way.

Source: unhate.benetton.com/ 18 year old Viktorija Bozhinoska from Macedonia
shared her vision to tackle migration of educated
According to Benetton: youth in her home city Prilep. 25 year old
Lili Chong from Belgium shared her plan to
“[The initiative] aims to spread a positive message create a community mentorship program for
of hope and celebrate young people’s ingenuity, under privileged children. 29 year old Ludwig
creativity, and their ability to create new smart ways Esposithoven from Italy shared his vision to
of addressing the problem of unemployment.” create a short movie that would highlight the
To spread word about the youth unemployment, exasperation affecting interns who compete for
Benetton encouraged unemployed people rare jobs.
between the ages of 18 to 30 to create and share
UNWORK CVs documenting their UNWORK
experience and their own personalized magazine
covers. 42,266 young people participated.

35

Keeps youth motivated
People have commended Benetton’s efforts to
motivate youth to spend their free time working
on creative and social good projects.
As Govind, National Creative Director at
MSLGROUP Creative+ and member of the
MSLGROUP Insights Network, commented:
“Nice way to channelise otherwise wasted resources
- so many minds with so many ideas, but no jobs.”

Source: unhate.benetton.com/unemployee-of-the-year Journalist Chidanand Rajghatta also commended
Benetton for channeling their free time to social
Crowds voted on their favorite projects from good projects:
September to October 2012, and the 100 most
popular projects were each awarded € 5000 by “A job doesn't define who you are, but what you
the UNHATE Foundation. fight and strive for does. So if you don't have a job,
don't let it stop you from doing something positive
Benetton (finally) gets into social for your community.”
work
In the past, Benetton has gotten flak for
exploiting social issues in its advertising
campaigns and not creating or contributing to
solutions. Unemployee of the Year is Benetton’s
first initiative that proposes and invests in a
solution.
As Stuart Elliott, advertising columnist at
The New York Times, wrote:
“For almost as long, critics have dismissed the ads
Source: http://youtu.be/zKZ3w_Vg4o8
as exploitative because they do not offer solutions
to the problems or assistance to the causes that Times of India reader Dinesh Prabhakar
could use financial help". pointed out the importance of reaching out to the
“Now, however, Benetton is going to put some youth with this message:
money where its mouth is — 500,000 euros, to be “The campaign highlights a point not ever thought
exact, or about $650,000.” by others, [everyone] needs words of appreciation
Important issue to highlight and commendation, the very first thought that
you are needed and are a part of the society where
Bloggers and journalists agree with Benetton’s majority of people are employed, can make one
choice of social cause and believe that youth get up and start doing something beneficial for the
unemployment is a severe problem affecting that society!”
world. Benetton estimates that there are over 100
million unemployed youths (15 to 29) worldwide. Good insight, but UNshocking
As mawaltrees commented at guardian.co.uk:
execution
While bloggers agree with the cause, they have
“The issue of youth unemployment is a massive
criticized the print ads for being “too boring”
economic timebomb, it's not a minor issue. A
and not as controversial as previous Benetton
strong economic climate enables us to improve
campaigns.
society and it's infrastructure for the benefit of
all. A weak economic climate means 'minorities'
will continue to find themselves bottom of the
priority list and scapegoated. The issue of youth
unemployment could not be more important.”
Volume 1, Issue 4, Unemployee of
the Year

As journalist Arwa Mahdawi wrote: “The money to be awarded the winners [€500,000]
is a small sum compared with the estimated
“The way in which Benetton has chosen to budget for the Unemployee of the Year campaign,
champion Neets in its latest campaign is shocking. which is 20 million euros, or about $26.2 million.
Not because of the choice of subject matter, But it is a major commitment compared with
but because the subject is presented in such what Benetton has spent until now on the issues
an un-shocking manner. The ads are so utterly addressed by its ads.”
unprovocative that some commentators are
already calling it Benetton's most boring campaign “Every little bit helps”
ever. Benetton is a company, after all, that is
famous for its controversial advertising.” Many people, however, are grateful for Benetton’s
efforts, acknowledging that the economic
situation is dire and “every little bit counts.”
As DJ commented at nytimes.com:
“Actually, it equals about $6,500; and every little
bit helps when you have no job at all.
“Pepsi does it; Levis does it. Who are we to judge if
this company passes on the wealth in any manner
they choose? Anytime a company gives back, we
should be grateful; especially since Capitalism
has done such a great job at promoting profit, not
promoting social welfare.”

Source: marketplace.org
Feature-writer Zoe Beaty too noted:

Indeed, some bloggers expected a campaign “It’s certainly not going to change the world. But its
as controversial as the previous UNHATE “Kiss” humour and support is refreshing. And, let’s face it:
campaign, in which political leaders were shown things are pretty dire. Every little helps.”
kissing each other.
Marketers predict the messaging and €5,000
As Adverblog blogger Martina wrote: grants will help Benetton build a lasting
relationship with the target market. As Tim Nudd
“I personally find the insight to be perfect, but I wrote:
like the execution less. It’s a bit too elegant and
polished, less edgy than you would expect from a “They may be less provocative than last year's, but
brand (and about a topic) that wants to generate a perhaps they'll make a more lasting difference in
lot of word of mouth not just for a few days thanks the lives of the target market.”
to a massive campaign launch PR effort. Yes,
metaphorically speaking, I kind of miss “the kiss” Doing good is good for business
scene somewhere.” Studies show that consumers prefer to buy from
companies that give back to society. Marketers
Is Benetton’s effort enough? believe that “doing good” is good business and
Several journalists have also questioned whether brands are implementing programs that give
Benetton’s efforts are “enough.” back to society.

Journalist Arwa Mahdawi slammed Benetton for
not doing more:
“When companies are able to provide tangible
resources to solve social problems, CSR schemes
can be a very good thing. Benetton's Unemployee
of the Year, however, smacks of the flimsiest sort of
brand-aid: a temporary salve that solves nothing.”
Stuart Elliott, advertising columnist at The New
York Times, shared a more balanced view:

37

Volume 1 Issue 4: People's Lab Insights

Volume 1 Issue 4: People's Lab Insights

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Volume 1 Issue 4: People's Lab Insights