Grown Up Thinking

There are many among us who cherish the days when we get to indulge in a hearty breakfast of pancakes and syrup instead of our usual cup of coffee and too much to do. Well today is our day, because it is officially National Pancake Day according to IHOP, and the folks over at the famed food shop are taking a new approach to promoting it with a Web 2.0 spin!

For starters, IHOP enlisted Miss America 2010 to be the official spokesperson for National Pancake Day to support the nationwide promotion and tie-in with the Children’s Miracle Network. On the official National Pancake Day website consumers can share information via their social networks and sign up to receive celebrity wake up calls reminding them to celebrate with some pancakes. If you’re one of the 74,000+ IHOP Facebook fans you may have noticed that you were automatically sent to the National Pancake Day tab this morning while IHOP employees across the country took to their local IHOP Twitter accounts to spread the news about the promotion and were even triumphant enough to earn IHOP a spot in the coveted “Trending Topics” list on Twitter. Overall I’d give IHOP an “A” for effort, but a “B” overall for their Web 2.0 centered celebration. They’ve got a lot of room to make this a full-blown social media extravaganza, and this is a great step in that direction.

At some point over the last year many of us have realized that some of what we post on Twitter may not be what we’d like to share with all of our followers. Unfortunately for those in that situation, Twitter does not have privacy settings like Facebook that allow you to choose who can see what information that you share, so what do you do when you realize that your personal life is crossing over into your public life? The answer is simple – make a second account!

The first question you should ask yourself when doing this is, “Why am I using Twitter and what am I trying to accomplish?”. There are many reasons why having multiple accounts makes sense. You can segment your Twitter traffic based on your interests, focus content on different topics and develop larger followings across different fields. I will admit that I ran in to the same problem on Twitter which actually became more of a positive than a negative. Now that I have two Twitter accounts I can share personal content with my close group of friends and network with other professionals. In fact, I recently discovered that 53% of Twitter users have multiple accounts which is why Twitter management software like HootSuite and TweetDeck have become so popular.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Twitter was already developing a new platform to improve some of the organization and privacy issues that are plaguing many users- but until that day comes, I’ll have to keep up with my (not so) secret double life on Twitter. You can call me Bond… James Bond.

The new Vampire Weekend album, Contra, came out a few weeks ago. As a fan, I did what I always do… I downloaded it illegally. I didn’t even think twice.

Then a curious thing happened. One of my coworkers rushed to the record store to buy the very same album.  Huh? He enthusiastically explained the beauty of having something tangible, described pouring over the inset, the liner notes, the bonus poster that came in the sleeve. Having the album ensures that you listen to the tracks in the order the artist intended, he said, the time and energy involved in tracking down the record made it that much better. It all sounded very transcendental – something Penny Lane would wax poetic about in Almost Famous.

I can’t relate. At 22, I don’t think I’ve ever purchased an album. I got onboard the Napster train early on and haven’t looked back since.

All legal issues aside, is it possible that I’m missing something fundamental by skipping the pomp and fanfare of the record store? By downloading an artist’s tracks individually online, am I reducing the integrity of the music to a 99 cent commodity?

PS. Vampire Weekend, it you’re reading this – I’m very sorry. I owe you 12 dollars.

As we enter the “tear it up” 10s we should be in for a wild year in all areas of American culture- entertainment, technology, sports, and media. Since Twitter has become such a critical source for news dissemination, I thought it would be appropriate to share some predictions for 2010 in the form of Tweets:

1. @TigerWoods: feels great to be back on the course and winning again

2. @BarackObama: We never said we were out of the woods

3. @MTV: Ask and u shall receive! Excited 2 announce #JerseyShore renewed til 2015

4. @ESPN: SportsCenter in 3D premieres tonight- get ur glasses in today’s @USAToday

5. @Mashable: Facebook Announces Premium Account Service Offering $1/mo Subscriptions with Enhanced Functionality: http://bit.ly/19ksST

6. @The_Real_Shaq: #Italwaysfeelsgoodto hoist that trophy

7. @JamesCameron: Humbled by #Avatar passing Titanic as top-grossing film of all time

8. @AlGore: Don’t believe the hype, I am not running in 2012

9. @PerezHilton OMG! OMG! Tom and Katie are history

10. @NFLNetwork: 2011 lockout looms large for next season

11. @IMDB: Shooting for The Sopranos movie seen around Northern NJ yesterday

12. @VirginAmeria: Now offering @Skype seats for in-flight video conference in select “noisy rows”

13. @EbertChicago: Sex and The City 2: Two thumbs down!

14. @Gizmodo: The #SkiffReader is our 2010 tech device of the year

15. @JimJCramer: It is still not too late to get out of the dollar and into commodities

16. @CNN: 36 countries report internet outages for as long as 9 hrs as a global task force is created to identify what happened http://cnn.com

17. @LadyGaga: Just found out I’ve been selected by Richard Branson for Virgin Galactic’s first ride to space

18. @JimGoldman: Google discontinues #NexusOne citing lackluster sales

19. @APlusK: This tweet is sponsored by @Coca_Cola

20. @SergeyBrinn: We have officially ceased Google.cn. We recommend using @Baidu

What other tweets do you expect to see?

The XX Installation: Quote from Partizan director and creator Saam Farahmand-“Music videos are a 2D visual interpretation of a song. We are interested in creating spaces that exist as a 3D physical interpretation of a song or an album, and that is what we have created for the album xx.” A beautiful meld of music, technology and art that creates a “physical music video.” (via Creative Review Blog)

Levis’ DIY Closet: Simple. Smart. Surprising.

One Frame of Fame video: C-Mon & Kipski crowdsource their music video.

When I first downloaded Foursquare, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I mean, I’m already a Facebook and Twitter addict- how much more social media can a girl really need? Do my friends even care to know where I am at all times of the day? How often am I supposed to check in? Do I accept all friend requests or only people who I know? Do I really want complete strangers to know where I am?

After much thought, I came to the conclusion that everyone uses Foursquare for different purposes. Here are the five types of Foursquare users I have encountered:

The Cheater: Every Sunday night at 11:59pm EST the Foursquare leaderboard resets. Ever wake up on Monday morning and wonder how one of your friends already has 150 points? The truth is you probably need to get more honest friends, because this friend is a cheater.

The Hungry Tiger: Have any friends on Foursquare who check in at every single place they go- including every subway stop or convenience store? The friend may be classified as “The Hungry Tiger”, someone who can never get enough of Foursquare.

The Hot ‘n’ Cold: I have a few friends like this- those who can’t decide how they really feel about Foursquare. Sometimes they will check in and once they get a badge they quickly turn into The Hungry Tiger, but that rapidly slows down after about a week.

The Commitment-Phobe: This type of user (such as Melvin) has an account, but never uses it. Simple as that.

The Star Performer: This user in my opinion is the ideal Foursquare user. They check in at the appropriate places, such as restaurants and bars, yet refrain from checking in while simply purchasing a pack of gum at the deli across the street.

Given Foursquare’s rapid popularity, users are bound to encounter at least one of the above types. Some people even believe Foursquare could become the next Twitter. Keep your eyes open, folks- this is one social networking bus you won’t want to miss.

Dorthy.com, the ‘Dream Search Engine:’ The start of the year always has us rarin’ to go and conquer the world, but this delightful site allows do-gooders and dreamers to acquire relevant articles/photos/videos to help realize their goals, collaborative tools to connect with people who can help and sharing functionality. Seriously- lots of fun.

Appropriated Poster Campaign: brainchild of artist Sean Wolsey to use outdoor ads as a canvas to create a more meaningful, positive message.

TED Talk: enthnographer Stephana Broadbent talks about how the internet enables intimacy. Not all that new, but a must-watch for social media enthusiasts and brand managers alike.

LoveJingles.com: a “why in the hell didn’t I think of this” idea that has a Swedish musician writing customized jingles and creating videos to promote them. Almost as cool as Lo Fi Love Songs by Gretel Prinn (a perfect Valentine’s Gift, hrm?).

Foodspotting: way better’n Urban Spoon.

Stella Artois YouTube Channel: Beautiful creative curation from a brand that manages the tricky balance of honoring its roots while still seeming fresh.

Well, let’s face it. The new Stella campaign in its beautiful entirety.

The World’s First Crowdsourced Magazine Cover: would have been even better if it was executed by Good (another crazy obsession of ours).

The Body Image Project: Picking up where Dove left off, and adding a dedicated social media angle. Check our their Twitter handle- great practices in a very short time.

Canon Freeze Tag: how can you NOT love this execution?!?! Besides. It features a great track from the Go Team, a band frequently heard in our cube when we need a boost mid-afternoon.

221B: a splendid use of Facebook Connect to promote the new Sherlock Holmes movie. Dark, compelling, beautifully designed and effective (NOT like Welcome to Fight Club, which we wanted to love but was just totally arbitrary).

5 Things We’re Loving Right Now:

1. GetGlue.com: Personal recommendations + Foursquare-ish gaming for all your bookish, audiophile, movie dork obsessions.

2. Shmotter.com: Like Polyvore, but better. More social functionality.

3. All Together Now stop motion animation: Better’n Bud, but obviously a tip of the hat to a great commercial.

4. Laika: dynamic, interactive type for all ya design geeks (that means you, Mr. Helvetica).

5. Sweatshoppe Video Painting: public art spectacle that simply MUST be used by a brand. For serious.

Recently I’ve found that many of my friends’ Facebook, GChat and AIM statuses have become much less about their daily routine lives, but rather hilarious statements stemming from other people’s poor misfortune. Sites such as FMylife.com and TextsFromLastNight.com, in which people submit their day ruining moment or the funniest text they received over the weekend, have been overtaking my social networks, blogs and hours of my life I could otherwise spend doing something productive.

Even more interesting about this phenomenon is the rate at which these popular sites are being picked up for book deals. Publishers are flipping these trendy sites and turning them into hardcover coffee table books that typically sell for around the $10 price point. Sites that started with small underground followings like, Stuff White People Like, This is Why You’re Fat, I Can Has Cheezburger?, and of course FMyLife, have reached the masses through these deals.

This of course brings up the question, did they sell out? A site undoubtedly loses its edge when it’s suddenly turned into something that my mom can pick up at the local Barnes and Noble on the Best Sellers rack, but is the risk worth the reward? Either way, this is a trend I do not think we will see go away any time soon, as long as there’s internet and people willing to dress their dogs in funny outfits.