Case Study – 1000 words, APA format
- The analysis is to be clear and concise, and students will lose points for improper grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
- The analysis is to be a minimum of 1,000 words in length (typed, double-spaced, 12-point font) excluding the title page and references.
- The student will automatically lose points if these guidelines are not followed.
- Complete and submit the assignment by 11:59 PM ET on Saturday.
- Late work policies, expectations regarding proper citations, acceptable means of responding to peer feedback, and other expectations are at the discretion of the instructor.
- Based on the course readings and knowledge gained from this course, students are to analyze the case and propose strategic solutions that will develop Walmart’s social commerce https://www.computerworld.com/article/3035143/no-matter-how-hard-walmart-tries-it-cant-shake-being-store-centric.html
- The writing should include the following:
Executive summary (50 words minimum and 100 words maximum)
Outline of the e-commerce challenges
Proposal of strategic solutions to develop social commerce
Social Media Marketing
Tracy L. Tuten & Michael R. Solomon
Social Entertainment
Chapter 8
Learning objectives
What is social entertainment? What is branded entertainment? How is it distinguished from content marketing used in social publishing?
How can social media marketers use social entertainment to meet branding objectives? Why is social entertainment an effective approach for engaging target audiences?
3
Learning objectives
What are the characteristics of social games and gamer segments? How can marketers effectively use social games? How are alternate reality games different from other social games?
How are brands using original digital video as a social entertainment tactic?
In what ways are marketers using social music, social video and television, and social celebrity to share brand messaging?
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Figure 8.1 The social entertainment zone
Social entertainment as play
Play as power
Play as identity
Play as fantasy
Play as frivolity
What is social branded entertainment?
When brands create owned vehicles of branded content, in the form of games, music, or film, which is participatory and shareable via digital connections, that is social branded entertainment.
Marketing with social entertainment
Degree of brand integration
Low
High
Advertising
Sponsorship
Branded
Original digital video
Branded video
Social TV
Social music
What is a social game?
Social games are multiplayer, competitive, goal-oriented activities with defined rules of engagement and online connectivity among players.
Typical elements of social games
Leaderboards
Achievement badges
Friend lists
Gamer segments
Casual
Hardcore
How can we characterize social games?
Platform
Mode
Milieu
Genre
Genres
Simulation
01
Action
02
Role-playing
03
Strategy
04
Options for game-based marketing
Around-game and in-game advertising
Product placement
Brand integration
Advergames
Mini-case study: Burger King’s #angriestwhopper advergame
Social advergame reinforced brand message and incentivized restaurant visits and purchase
More than a million game sessions played and hundreds of thousands of coupons distributed to players
Credit: iStock.com / ThomasVogel
For reflection: When are advergames unethical?
Gatorade’s Bolt game portrayed water as the enemy to children.
The game met its objectives, achieving 2 million downloads, 87 million plays, and millions of brand impressions.
While illustrating the value of social advergames, did it cross a line?
Why do social games work for marketers?
Gamers are open to advertising content in games.
Brands benefit when they associate with a successful game.
Players identify with the brands their characters use, increasing brand involvement.
Branding within a game’s story is an unobtrusive way to share a brand’s core message.
Targeting to specific groups is possible.
Marketers can measure a game’s promotional value.
ARG: An intensive form of social game
An ARG is a cross-media genre of interactive fiction using multiple delivery and communications media, which may include traditional media such as television, radio, newspapers, and postal service and digital media.
The vocabulary of ARGs
Puppet master: The authors, architects, and managers of the story and its scenarios and puzzles.
Curtain: The invisible line separating the players from the puppet masters.
Rabbit hole: The clue or site that initiates the game.
Collective detective: A term that captures the notion of collaboration among a team of geographically dispersed players who work together to flesh out the story.
Lurkers and rubberneckers: Lurkers follow the game but do not actively participate; rubberneckers participate in forums but do not actively play.
Steganography: The tactic of hiding messages within another medium so that the message is undetectable for those who do not know to look for it.
Trail: A reference index of the game including relevant sites, puzzles, in-game characters, and other information.
The vocabulary of args
Table 8.2 Pros and cons of ARGs as social entertainment branding
Measuring ARG effectiveness
Number of active players
Number of lurkers and rubberneckers
Rate of player registration
Number of player messages generated
Traffic at sites affiliated with the ARG
Number of forum postings
Average play time
Media impressions made through ARG-generated publicity
Original digital video and branded video
Casper uses branded social entertainment
Insomnobot3000 chats with insomniacs on restless nights
Original bedtime stories told via podcast
Original talk show, In Your Dreams, provides dream analysis to callers
Credit: Yuganov Konstantin / Shutterstock.com
Social TV
Social TV is technology that supports communication and social interaction in either the context of watching television or related to TV content.
The experience of watching TV is enhanced by social media.
The phenomenon relates to social celebrity and the rise of “microcelebrities.”
Marketing with social music
In-network advertising
Immersive branding
Recap and questions
What is social entertainment? What is branded entertainment? How is it distinguished from content marketing used in social publishing?
How can social media marketers use social entertainment to meet branding objectives? Why is social entertainment an effective approach for engaging target audiences?
What are the characteristics of social games and gamer segments? How can marketers effectively use social games? How are alternate reality games different from other social games?
Recap and questions
How are brands using original digital video as a social entertainment tactic?
In what ways are marketers using social music, social video and television, and social celebrity to share brand messaging?