With social networking on the rise, it’s no wonder that major brands are looking for ways to co-opt the trend. Some of those successes were on display at this week at CES in Las Vegas. Datamation takes a look
LAS VEGAS — Social media has changed the way people look for jobs, share pictures of their kids and find new love interests, but thus far the vast majority of large companies still aren’t taking advantage of these sites and services to evangelize — and protect — their brands, according to a panel of social networking experts here at the Consumer Electronics Show.
For those companies willing to make the cultural commitment to the instantaneous praise and bashing served up 140 characters at a time on Twitter, the rewards can be considerable.
Jeffrey Hayzlett, Kodak’s chief marketing officer, said that he learned firsthand after the company originally debuted its Zi8 waterproof, pocket-sized HD video camera earlier this year. The critics loved the functionality — 1080p resolution, two-inch LCD screen, safe up to 10 feet in water — but hated the name.
Most companies would either ignore the panning or, perhaps, send the product back to the sales and marketing gurus to come up with a better name.
Kodak didn’t. Instead, this summer it took the naming process to the people via Twitter, asking the great unwashed masses on the microblogging site to see if they could come up with something better.