Digital Strangelove
(or How I Learned To Stop Worrying & Love The Internet)

We are a social people. This is not new.

Discussion and stories are as old as time.

Even on the Internet.

Games | News | Community

“…tools don't get
socially interesting
until they get “Advances don’t become
Clay Shirky
technologically interesting until they
socially
become technologically boring”
boring.”
- Clay Shirky

Once upon a time even paper was impressive.

Invention of flight to mass travel?
Flight is not what it was…

The making of music?
…nor is the making of music.

From photography to modern
film (phones on cameras?)
Photography?

What changed?

“…tools don't get
socially interesting
until they get “Advances don’t become
Clay Shirky
technologically interesting until they
socially
become technologically boring”
boring.”
- Clay Shirky

He’s on to something…
Clay Shirky “Advances don’t become
socially interesting until they
become technologically boring”

From cave paintings…

…TO BLOGS
…to blogs.

It has been
about human
expression and
stories.
(look for this to continue)

Invention of flight to mass travel?
Flight was invented in 1903…

…and the jumbo not until 1970.

The gramophone was invented in 1880…

…AM radio in 1895, FM in 1933…

…but nobody needs (or wants) any of
those now.

From photography to modern
film (phones on cameras?)
The camera came along around 1840 or so.

150 years later we’re finding new uses.

Film came along around 1895 too…

…100 years on it’s accessible to
almost anyone.

But the Internet?

40 years old, only really about 15 as
we know it.

None of these were what they are
40 years in. Let alone 15.

The truth is we’re still figuring this out.

We’re doing some amazing things…

…in a lot of different ways.

But one year to the next is anyone’s guess.

We’re confusing growth with growing up.

Scale is not the same as maturity.

Time to reach audience of 50 million
(source: Shift Happens)
Radio | 38 years
TV | 13 years
Internet | 4 years
iPod | 3 years
Facebook | 2 years
Or evolution.

My point being the web is young…

…and we still have a long way to go.

Let’s pause and talk about business
for a second.

Is it imperative for a business to have a
presence online?

If you answered “No”, I have a flying
machine I would like to sell you.

If you answered “Yes”, then please roll the
dice and continue playing.

Now, how did we get where we are?

“…classic Mcluhan-esque mistake of
appropriating the shape of the previous
technology as the content of the new
technology.” – Scott Macleod

(i.e. we did what we knew because the
alternative was standing still)

In Advertising this meant…
Direct Mail Email
Billboards Banners
And TVCs that continued to talk to
you like you were five years old.

(we’ll come back to this in a moment)

“The medium is the message.”
- Marshall Mcluhan

?
That may not be true anymore.

We have defined
media by the
medium it is
consumed on,
not the media itself.

TV
or
film?
Just video.

Newspaper?
Book?
Magazine?
Just text.

Radio?
Albums?
Just sound.

?
In which case, we’re dealing with raw
expression not altered by its delivery
method (i.e. its medium)

I find the
absence of silos
fairly exciting.
And much closer
to real life.

It is like the entire media industry was
hoisted into the sky and the Internet
was placed beneath it…

…destroying the silos and the
business models that relied on them.

(which is basically what happened)

Back to our friends on the Avenue.

It no longer makes sense to plant flags.
(shamelessly stolen from Faris)

Because nobody recognises them anyway.
(again)

We’re still building for this…

Map of Internet traffic
Show me the borders.
…and sending it out into this…

…as if this had never happened…

…or media was still consumed in
a linear fashion.

Consumption and conversation are now
hand in hand.

In fact you could argue they’re one
and the same.

Which
makes the
idea of “social”
media utterly
redundant.

“Media is inherently social. It provides an
idea pathway between people.”
– Faris Yakob

Talking about platforms misses the point.

It is now as
easy to create
content as it is
to consume it...

…that is the
important part
of what is
happening.

People

expressing

themselves.

That is what the masses are referring to
when they say “social media”.

“Media is inherently social. It provides an
idea pathway between people.”
– Faris Yakob

And the Internet contains all media.

Presenting…THE INTERNET!!
(…formerly known as
“social media”…which was
formerly known as
“the Internet”…)

If both the web & media are
inherently social, & if business
must have a presence online,
then business must have a
social element. To not have
that is to forego both logic &
opportunity.

Remember:

expression.

And it is just getting easier.

This is Tumblr – more on that later.

With all this expressing going on,
let’s talk about control.

Remember this group? There’s not a whole
lot of dictating opinions to them.

They tend to say what they want; they
always have. The idea there was once
“control” is a fallacy.

“…(engage) with the
intent to hear and the
intent to consider what
those folks are telling
you.”
- Altitude Branding

Do that and you have as much ability to
affect your audience’s perception as you
ever did.

Map of Internet traffic
Show me the borders.
It just happens on a larger scale.

Remember:

expression.

Expression is easy. Creating content is easy.

“It makes increasingly less sense to talk about
a publishing industry, because the core
problem publishing solves — the incredible
difficulty, complexity,
and expense of making
something available
to the public —
has stopped being
a problem.”
- Clay Shirky

This has taken the
previous model of content
being scarce, media being
expensive, and the
attention of the audience
being guaranteed
– and flipped it.

Media (content) = $free. Attention = priceless.

“Strike that – reverse it.”

And herein lies the problem
for advertising.

Advertising got really good at speaking in
30 second chunks to a captive audience.

Then quickly found most brands had
nothing to say on the 31st.

Attention
Traditional
Attention Media Attention
Attention
And couldn’t operate once this…

…became this.

See, advertising is based on interruption.

See, advertising is based on interruption.

Thankfully we can now do this.

We can do this because we’re dealing with
bits, not atoms.

We can do this because media is
now based in bits and not atoms.
Which is why this is happening.

(…and this…)

This disruption is happening and will
continue to happen in any industry that is
“end-to-end digital”. - Fred Wilson

So, given it’s ubiquity,
does it even make
sense to talk about
“digital” anymore?
I don’t think so, and
I’m not alone.

“Increasingly I'm finding the word
'digital’ more of a hindrance than a
help. It's too broad to mean anything.”
– Faris Yakob

“Digital is not a ‘thing’ anymore.”
– Iain Tait

So, let’s talk about nothing.

If attention is priceless, then the attention
economy is out of business.

So now we operate in the
“Intention Economy”

The Intention Economy says “We’re not
here for you, we’re here for US!”

“If I tell my Facebook friends about your
brand, it is because I like my friends
– not because I like your brand!”
– Mike Arauz

“You are what you share.”
– Charles Leadbeater

What do we share?

STORIES

Slide on popular memes.

Slide on popular memes.

Slide on popular memes.

Slide on popular memes.

This has nothing to do with “influencers”.

Influenced
however?
Yes.

“We see influence (what folk
do to each other on our
behalf) where emulation (of
what folk around us are
doing) is the real mechanic
behind the spread of
human behaviour.”
- Mark Earls

It’s about synergies in your audience.

It’s about synergies in your
audience.

It’s about synergies in your
audience.

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

“I don't have to control the conversation to
benefit from their interest in my product.
The key is to produce something that both
pulls people together and gives them
something to do.” – Henry Jenkins

A note on
User
Generated
Content…

It stops
working when
people try to
control it.

What agencies and
brands have done is try
to co-opt passion for an
activity and artificially
focus it with incentives.
(suffice to say this has blown up spectacularly at times)

Agency found BMW photos on Flickr.

Agency found BMW photos on Flickr.
Contacted photographers for use.

Agency found BMW photos on Flickr.
Contacted photographers for use.
Asked them to sign away rights.

Agency found BMW photos on Flickr.
Contacted photographers for use.
Asked them to sign away rights.
Said no attribution would be given.

Slide on popular memes.
Remember memes?

Slide on popular memes.
Here’s another.

“As to methods there may be a
million and then some, but
principles are few. The man who
grasps principles can successfully
select his own methods. The man
who tries methods, ignoring
principles, is sure to have trouble.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Attention
Traditional
Attention Media Attention
Attention
Advertising’s approach to UGC was as if
this still mattered…

…and now we know it doesn’t.

It nailed the methods, foregoing
principles...

…while the principles themselves were
self-evident.

“I don't have to control the conversation to
benefit from their interest in my product.
The key is to produce something that both
pulls people together and gives them
something to do.” – Henry Jenkins

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

So, where to from here?

2 things:
Data
Meaning
2 things: Data and Meaning.

1. Data is the bank.

“Create more value than you capture.”
– Tim O’Reilly

More data will be shared more openly.

We’re seeing this change in business now,
from who has the most data, to who can
derive the most meaning

Tumblr (aka “next year’s Twitter”) is all
about data and meaning.

1. Data is the bank.

2. Meaning is the Currency

Remember meaning? That is where $ is.

Google acquires DoubleClick | $3.1 billion
Adobe acquires Omniture | $1.8 billion
Google acquires YouTube | $1.5 billion
Microsoft acquires aQuantive | $6 billion
WPP acquires 24/7 Real Media | $649 million
Acquisitions based on data+meaning

Nike+ is all about data+meaning.

So is…

…and Twitter Search (look for a deal with
Google or Microsoft shortly).

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND
That connection we talked about earlier?

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND
It’s sticking around, growing and
changing and becoming something
new.

INTENT can drive data+meaning.

You can keep the big
ideas, the single-
minded proposition,
and whatever else
you had that worked…

…here.

They don’t belong here.

“People have a really good ability to see
through you (and the) projects on the
Internet that are just done to try and make
you famous.” – Christian Lander

“What we need are gems and diamond-
cutters.” – Katie Chatfield

Now > Later
Free > Paid
Your intent is framed by the way you
deliver value.

I call this The Three Musketeers rule.

All for One or One for All

All For One is 20th century value creation.
It is driven by self-interest & excelled
in the silos.

One For All is how businesses thrive today.
When they create value for themselves,
they create value for an eco-system.

What should you value here?

Free?

Free

Now

Now
Given a choice between FREE and NOW,
people will surprise you.

File-sharing down among teens
(find story)

Which is actually the reason MP3s became
so popular in the first place.

And Flip video cameras.

Healthcare
And it’s about to turn a bunch of other
industries on their heads too.

It is called the
“Good Enough Revolution”,
and it is not a
conversation
about features.

It is a
conversation
about benefits.

Now
Free

Now
Paid

Later
Free

Later
Paid

Now Now
Free Paid
Later Later
Free Paid

Figuring out which
spot you occupy is one
thing, figuring out
where your
competition sits
is another.

Now
Free
If your business model can subsist on this
sort of offering, it makes life much easier.

Now
Paid
Odds are however it occupies this space,
and it’s important to have a paid space.

Remember Fred? He also coined
the term “Freemium”.

Now Now
Free Paid
Freemium combines these two things;
build an audience with Free, use it to
develop a premium product for Paid.

You can augment Now with the promise of
Later, be it future content, a subscription,
whatever makes sense for your business.
Later Later
Free Paid

If the position you occupy however is only
Later, prepare to be obsolete.
Later Later
Free Paid

Chance is you already are…
Later Later
Free Paid

…here…

…which is more relevant than here…

…because so much of our life is now
“end-to-end digital”.

As the Internet matures, we’ll tackle
these things…

…expression will continue to get easier…

…and it will all start to make more sense.

Slide on popular memes.
(…probably…)

We’ll stop talking about screens...

Now
…and just talk about…well…you get the idea.

The future is
data+meaning.

And a Statement of Intent will guide us.

Intent is about hidden meaning.
About deeper truth.
About DNA.

This is marketing.
This is DNA.

“New DNA…lets today’s new market leaders perceive, think,
judge, & execute (vastly) more efficiently, effectively, &
productively than the norm, leading directly to new sources of
advantage.” – Umair Haque

Slide on popular memes.
Intent is never just marketing.

But everything we’ve used up to this point
is, from the single-minded proposition
on down.

Intent is guerilla warfare. It is multifaceted.

“What we need are gems and diamond-
cutters.” – Katie Chatfield

When asked how he expected to continue
Apple’s stock performance, Steve Jobs said
“We intend to keep innovating.”

A note on Apple.

The making of music?
This is about facilitating expression.

The making of music?
The intent is to get out of the way and let
people express themselves.

The intent of an Apple product is to be
invisible, & amplify its user’s
self-expression.

Which is why they are adored.

Even though they do not, as a corporate
entity, interact with their consumers
outside of a retail context.

i.e. They do not
participate in
“social media”.

(cue light bulb)

The synergies in your audience?

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND
Find them.

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
BRAND
Connect your audience & tell their story.

AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
AUDIENCE AUDIENCE
And then they will tell yours.
BRAND

Because they will be the same thing.

Don’t compartmentalise.
Nobody lives like that.

Don’t think about channel strategies.
Think about intent.

And forget about silos. There are none left.

Map of Internet traffic
Show me the borders.
Just stories.

Thank you.

Photo credits & references…
A very special thank-you to the geniuss..es..genii…the smart people behind compfight.
99% of all images were sourced with it. A big thanks also to the talented Flickr
community who embrace Creative-Commons licensing.
I have done my best to attribute each picture to its author, as well as a quote if I used
one. If I have made a mistake please contact me (davidngillespie@gmail.com) and I
will correct it. If I have used an image of yours and you would like me to take it out,
please also drop me a line and I will remove it.
I will also encourage you to have a Coke and a smile.
You can find me at the following places:
Creative Is Not A Department | Twitter | Tumblr | YouTube | delicious | LinkedIn
And when not thinking about this stuff, I play music and wish I lived here (if you can
make that happen you should call me).
Thank you for your time, I really appreciate it, and I’d love to hear what you think.

Cover: Random Literature Council #20: Kalapan Taras (have name,
#2: Shoothead can’t find link)
#3: Rob Gallop #21: Mark Sebastien
#4: Shamelessly stolen from #22: Steve Wampler
The New Yorker #24: Jim Christian
#5: Shots of Penny Arcade, Digg & #25: Work The Angles
4Chan. #27: Mouton.Rebelle
#6: Benjamin Ellis #30: Balloonacy by the brilliant
#7: Diffendale team at Poke
#8: The Wright Brothers. Frankly (P.S. Can I have a job?)
I’m betting on this one being #31: Have you been hiding under a
out of ©, apologies if it isn’t. rock?
#9: It’s OK, Steve said I could. #32: World of Warcraft
#10: *Kicki* #33: @davidgillespie
#11: Eflon #34: A hungover-me with Riley
#15: The genius that is Scott Smart, future mofo.
Schuman, aka The Sartorialist #35: yoheiyamashita
#19: John M (2007) #37: niznoz

#38: John Spooner #52: Valerie Reneé
#39: Web Trends Map 4 from the #53: Rudolf Schuba
talented and lovely #56, 58: My handy-work. I know –
Information Architects amazing!!!
#40: Jeff McNeil #60: Faris Yakob is your man.
#41: He’s been dead a long time. #61: See #60.
#42: v@lentina #62: National Geographic. They’re
#43: Jon Tandy not litigious are they?
#44: Scott McCloud’s TED talk #63: The Opte Project
featuring this quote is a must- #64: Stolen from @timbeveridge
watch. #69: Picture of Faris. No idea where
#44a: I SAID MUST WATCH!!! it came from.
#45: cayusa #73: *ZOom2
#46: Raúl! #79: marciookabe
#48: This is Marshall Mcluhan. I #80: Glasses, teeth by me.
have no idea where it came #82: Prince symbol. He’s not
from. litigious either I’m told…
#51: lorenabuena #86: Scott Drummond’s Posterous

#87: My Tumblr. And I want Oasis’ #119: Pic by Wordle, of my blog.
Live Forever, OK? Intention Economy dreamed up by
#88: Myxi Doc Searls. GENIUS!
#100: Stephen Poff #120: Richard Holden
#101: If you don’t get this reference #121: No idea who took this. Help!
there is no child inside you. #125: evanrapp
#102: Marty Neumeier (GENIUS!) #126, 127: Know Your Meme
#103: Stuck In Customs #128: Steve Rhodes
#104: ƒяαиcєscα яσsє #129: Print by Tim Doyle – GENIUS!
#111, 112: Shamelessly stolen from #130: Sangre en el hombro de Palas
Did You Know 4.0 #131: Again, Know Your Meme
#113: Random photo of the very #132: Barack Obama
handsome Fred Wilson (Fred, #135: Various Adidas billboards
please see P.S. on #30) #136: Converse, innit.
#115: Moustache, also by me. #137: Red Bull
#116: Nick Farnhill #143: Pic. Quote by Henry Jenkins,
#117: People…they’re the worst! GENIUS!.
#118: Reuben Whitehouse #144: Vanderlin

#148: estoril | More on BMW. #192: Rusty Stewart
#154: Fail. Consume with epic lulz. #201: Revolution Magazine
#159: Gauravonmics #204: Shamelessly stolen from
#164: joelwillis Wired’s Good Enuf
#165: Ken Wilcox. Revolution – GENIUS!
#166: Visit DataPortability.org #227: Cha già José
#167: takeshi | #230: littledan77
Tim O’Reilly – GENIUS! #231: Sifu Renka
#168: Baptiste Pons #233: psd |
#172: pfala Umair Haque – GENIUS!
#174: Hugh McLeod – GENIUS! #235: Hugh McLeod (see #174)
#188: Pic. Christian Lander’s great #236: piettroizzo
@Google Talk where the #238: shio
quote was shamelessly #239: Julian Nistea
stolen from. #242: powerbooktrance
#189: jurvetson | #243: ThiagoMartins
Katie Chatfield quote #244: manuel | MC
#191: Indie Charlie #246: Cayusa