Some Spend to Win an Account. At Extrovertic, We Tighten Our Belts

Recently, Extrovertic was given the opportunity to pitch the creative portion of an account for which we had already won the strategic part.

To ensure that our creatives truly appreciated the plight of those who suffer from the rarely discussed, but extremely disturbing and uncomfortable disease state that the drug treats, Planning Extrovert Laura Radosh had an interesting idea. On her invite to the creative briefing, she wrote, "Please wear or bring a belt."

At the briefing itself, Laura instructed everyone to take out – or off – their belt and to position it high up on their belly. Then to tighten it as much as we possibly could.

"Okay, now close your eyes and imagine you've just finished eating a big Thanksgiving dinner. How do you feel?" she asked.

"Stuffed," a writer responded.

"Do you feel like having desert now?"

"No," we all answered in unison.

"How about going to to the beach?" she asked.

"No, way," an art director answered. "I wouldn't be caught dead without a shirt on right now."

"And what about sex?" she asked, cheekily.

"No way." "Uh-uh." "Are you kidding?" "Uh, not right now, thank you..."

It was an interesting experience getting briefed in such a visceral way.  We really got a sense of what it feels like to suffer from the problem.

Says Laura, "We're talking about a condition that affects the sufferer in a deep emotional way. I felt it was important to try to have the creatives 'walk in their shoes' as much as possible. And the best way to do that was to have them try to physically feel like the sufferers feel 24 hours a day, 7 days a week."

The idea worked. Our work was not only great by creative standards, it demonstrated that we really understood how it feels to have this problem.

We won the account.  It was good to get that experience under our belts.

-Mark

 

Extrovertic's Social Media Guidelines

We recently created an Extrovertic task force to develop a set of social media guidelines for our own use at the agency. Here's what it came up with:

Social Media is a reality. It is ever present, all encompassing. We are connected to it on our phones, our computers, TV, advertising. It’s everywhere. As amazing as it is in certain respects, it also poses a whole new slew of problems for those who are plugged in. Who is exempt from viewing our Facebook pages, depicting incendiary pictures of our weekend debauchery? Who follows our tweets about who we hooked up with last night? There’s a lot of information out there and a lot of people we don’t want to see it.

 

Taking a step back, we must be cognizant of the positive aspects of social networking/media. Our clients are able to see us as well rounded individuals. Our networks can be used to locate new coworkers and connect with old friends. And most importantly, these mediums are integral to the promotion of the brands we support.

 

So where does that leave us? We need social media but, it has the potential to wreak havoc if used without due diligence. We also need to bear in mind the fact that as an advertising agency, we thrive on creative expression. Here are some simple guidelines to tweet, LinkIn, Facebook and YouTube by:

• If you wouldn’t want your mom to see it, the picture is probably not appropriate to post on the Web 
• If you wouldn't want it on the cover of the New York Times you shouldn't put it on your profile page 
• You know how when you write or create something, you want to get credit for it? So does everybody else. Respect copyrights and fair use whenever you publish anything onto the Web 
• The brands we represent trust us to be their advocates. They also trust us to treat their brands with respect. Make sure to not cite any of our clients or other people or agencies we work with, without their approval. Always make sure to link back to the source if you make a reference. Also, it’s a good idea to avoid publishing anything that has the potential to cast a less than stellar light on a client 
• Let's say you are cruising Facebook, and you come across an interesting article about a brand you work on. And you feel compelled to post the article to your page with a snazzy comment. Or you decide to write about Extrovertic on your personal blog. Even if you have something positive to say, you should include a disclaimer that whatever you write, are your opinions and your opinions alone 
• “R-E-S-P-E-C-T”. Aretha had it down. Show respect for your audience. Don’t use slurs, obscene words or personal insults when talking about clients 
• If you absolutely must post the picture of you in the adorable but obscenely short dress you bought for that “Jersey Shore”-themed party, make sure your picture settings are limited to viewing rights for your closest and best friends only 
• Same applies if you are incapable of resisting the urge to post the picture of you doing a keg stand last Thirsty Thursday 
• Try to add value to every piece of social media you participate in. Whether its promoting a brand you work on or highlighting an interesting article you read, try to make it have a      purpose 
• Facebook is sort of like Farmville in that if you let it, it can take over your life. And your job. Facebook’s a part of advertising so it makes sense that you spend some time on it every day. Same with YouTube. And Twitter. Just make sure you keep a good balance between work and surfing the social media channels 
• If you are going out with co-workers, and want to post pictures on Facebook, keep it kosher. Our clients may be less than inclined to see us slumped in the corner of a dusky bar, coworker turned nurse plying our lips apart with revitalizing liquids 
• These days, virtually everybody tweets. Maybe even your mom, sister or priest. Just make sure to tweet clean and if you tweet about/for work, keep it professional 
• Last but not least, the infamous YouTube. Videos of your kids having a food fight and putting mashed potatoes in each other’s hair; super cute. Videos of you drunkenly singing “I Will Always Love You” at a karaoke bar, you might want to leave that on your personal computer 

These guidelines were created for all of you, so please take advantage of them. They give you not only a great opportunity to practice what we preach, but also to get the word out to potential clients and employees about what sets Extrovertic apart from your average healthcare agency.

 

So be social. Be media savvy. Be respectful. Be Extrovertic.

 

And have fun.

 

Thanks to Jamie Silverman, Pete Van Bloem, Susan Wall, Richard Bloom and the rest of the Extrovertic Social Media Task Force. And an advance thank you to our readers, who I'm sure will be sending us their great thoughts and suggestions.

 

-Mark

 

 

Goodbye, Charlie

Like millions of other Americans, I found myself fascinated this week by the train wreck that is Charlie Sheen.

As much as I didn't want to, I still felt compelled to catch as much of his week-long interview binge as I could: On TV. Online. In the paper. In the tabloids at the supermarket checkout counter. 

How could I not? This guy has tiger blood. He's on a drug, "It’s called Charlie Sheen. It’s not available because if you try it once your face will melt off and your children will weep over your exploded body."

His gnarly behavior is epic. Duh!?

But the more I watched, the sadder I got. Not just for him. Or for the two kids the authorities took away from him in the midst of this media mess.

I felt sad for all of us. For the way we collectively take pleasure in someone's obvious mental illness.

This man clearly has a problem beyond drugs. His grandiosity and sense of self-importance suggests major psychological issues. Yet we become an enabler, feeding his need to rant before the cameras with our need to gawk at him.

"C'mon, Charlie. Show us how low you can go! Take us to the depths of insanity. We love it! We love you! Really go off the deep end!"

Perhaps he unwittingly did us all a favor.

Now maybe the next time Brittany, Lindsey or Mel show their ugly sides, we'll just shrug it off and think it amateurish compared to the master. We'll be so desensitized that nothing will hold our attention in the same way.

Maybe then, our lack of interest will stop feeding into the needs of these celebrities who so clearly need our attention, regardless of how they attract it.

That would be winning.

-Mark

 

And the Award for Best Supporting Actor Goes to All the Extroverts

In the spirit of tonight's Academy Awards acceptance speeches, I figured what better time to offer my personal thanks to all the wonderful folks who have helped Extrovertic grow so quickly into the kind of agency that we had hoped for when we started it just over two years ago.

At the risk of getting all verklempt, we have an amazingly talented, smart, dedicated –and just plain nice– group of people in our New York  and Cambridge offices.

There are a few things that separate our extroverts from the employees of the standard healthcare agencies:

First, while our people recognize that we're in the business of helping our clients' businesses, they understand that the best way to do this is to truly make a difference in the lives of patients. When an extrovert says he or she is passionate about patients, this isn't corporate speak. It comes from the heart. Every one of us feels a responsibility to immerse ourselves in the lives, lifestyles, and challenges of the patient populations we aim to help. And this need to understand and feel the pain, problems and joys of patients carries through every part of our organization, from our interns on up.

Second, everyone has a say at Extrovertic. We have a weekly staff meeting in which everyone gets to hear what 's going on with the agency and share what's going on with them. Nobody is too big or too small. And as extroverts, nobody is afraid to speak their mind.

Third, we all want to be the very best at what we do, whether it be creative, marketing strategy development, RM – anything. We all support each other in our collective quest to be the very best possible partner to our clients.

Fourth, we all work very hard, but we have fun doing it. What can be more fun than being involved right at the start of something that is growing as fast as our company?

A sincere and heartfelt thanks to all the extroverts. And an invitation to anyone who thinks there's an extrovert inside of them, just dying to get out...

-Mark

 

The Power to Remove Despots and Keep Customers

It’s being said on all the political talk shows and op ed pages that the past week’s people’s revolution in Egypt could not have happened without the power of Facebook and Twitter.

Yet while social media is proving itself time and time again to be a positive force in people’s lives, pharmaceutical clients are still a little nervous about adding it to their marketing toolbox.

Why? Because they fear that they could lose control of the discussion. That someone may step over the line in terms of adverse events. They feel they have to wait for the FCC to make good on its promise to establish guidelines for the industry to follow.

They don’t get how to assign the dialogue a monetary value. ROI is understood; ROE (return on engagement) is something pretty foreign to them.

But the perception is not the reality. Reportable adverse events are far less common than assumed. Nielsen randomly picked 500 postings on Yahoo Health boards. Only one of them qualified as a reportable adverse event. That’s a rate of 0.2%. The fact is, most comments don’t qualify as an adverse event.

As for the ROI question, Dorothy has been preaching since even before we opened Extrovertic that “ROE should be your new ROI.”

Back then the “E” was for “engagement.” Now, many in the industry have broadened it to mean, “experience.”  Regardless, there are a number of ways to quantify the monetary return on it.

I guess the irony is, that while social media can help rid a country of a dictator in 18 days, it has been slow to convince marketers to take up the cause.

Still, I have no doubt: the revolution will prevail.

-Mark

 

CouchSurfin' USA

The people asked for social networking.

And God said, "Let there be networking." And so He created MySpace.

But the people wanted more. And they prayed and thumped their chests and cried out for more.

And so God (and possibly Mark Zuckerberg) created Facebook.

But the people were still not satisfied. Neither the Book of Faces nor the Space of Mine sufficiently appeased their desire to be heard.

And so God created Twitter. And He said, “Go forth and speaketh in 140 characters or less.”

And so, the people tweeted.

But the people still were not satisfied. And so God created…

Couchsurfing? 

What is this “couchsurfing” we speak of?

A recent phenomenon (the first couch was surfed, circa 1999), it all began with couchsurfing.org, “a service in which members offer a spare couch – or bed, or floor space – to fellow couchsurfers, at no charge.”

The concept has since grown to include many other sites at which people can rent out apartments and homes all over the world. (AirBnB.com and iStopOver.com are just two popular newcomers to the scene.) 

Couchsurfing takes social networking to a whole new level. Though some say that the very nature of social networking ironically makes us anti-social (interactions are far more limited across a computer screen), this concept allows for entirely new friend-making possibilities.

Couchsurfing networks bring together the virtual and the real. It also brings together random strangers. (Unlike traditional social networks which help us more deeply connect with people we already know.)

So where will social networking take us next? 

And God said, “Ye faithful social networkers, sit back and think about it.”

-Jamie

 

An Extrovert Goes Mobile

On Wednesday, The Business Development Institute held a program, "Mobile Healthcare Communications: Case Studies & Roundtables," at The Graduate Center of the City University of New York.


We asked Supervising Account Extrovert, Jared Shechtman (shown above), to attend and report back to us. The following is his recap, verbatim.

Hope you find it as helpful and enjoyable as we did:


From: Jared Shechtman 

Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 11:45 PM

To: Extrovertic DL

Subject: Recap: Mobile Healthcare Communications at BDI

Hi All -

I had the opportunity this morning to sit in on Mobile Healthcare Communications Case Studies and wanted to pass along some of the learnings.

First observation: the number of people who stare at their mobile devices throughout a mobile healthcare conference is astounding.

Key learnings/notes:

• Protonix just launched a mobile co-pay program allowing patients to text to enroll and receive a mobile based coupon for fulfillment in addition to the ability to opt in for adherence program features.
• Pfizer Australia has launched an app that indicates pet friendly locations (restaurants, beaches, etc.) 

      – A non app version is also available on: http://www.pawclub.com.au
• Pfizer's mobile traffic has increased x4 since last year and is expected to double again by Q3
• A mobile friendly version of pfizer.com launched yesterday
      – Consider mobile using when building all websites, this is an excellent example of online best practices
• Pfizer goals for mobile are to increase visibility, traffic, awareness and to optimize their site
• It was noted that at present Pfizer has been very Apple focused (iPhone apps only) but that will be changing in the near future
      – Being mobile platform agnostic is important as Android continues to increase share. Mobile is moving so quickly new data is coming out almost daily!
• One of the most important keys to any mobile / social push is that applications/assets need support via media and other drivers
• 96% of gen Y (tomorrows customers) are on social networks
• RipRoad in association with Mount Sinai presented a case study on a text based Q&A forum for teenagers that has proven to be highly successful
      – Concept could be applied to a nurse help line offering
• Overall takeaway: Mobile/social will quickly not be thought of as completely separate specialities but will become a standard part of the mix


Lastly, this conference shamed me into finally signing up for Twitter, follow my adventures at JaredS81

Thnx!


Jared


While we're at it, my Twitter address is MDrossman and Dorothy's is Extrovertic. Hope to hear from you soon!

-MD