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Strategy report
TO: Proximity Social Networking Team FROM: Holly Strain DATE: September 28, 2009 SUBJECT: Myspace strategy analysis

Here is my Myspace strategy analysis. Although Myspace is no longer the number one social network in the world, many analysts thinks it is still number one in the Gen Y community. Whether Gen Y users will switch to Facebook as their primary social network depends on whether Myspace can keep Gen Y interested.


 * Profile**

Myspace is a social network that connects people through personal expression, content, culture, chat, etc. Myspace, launched in January 2004, was acquired by News Corp. in October 2005. It integrates personal profiles, photos, videos, mobile, messaging, games, and the world’s largest music community(News Corp 10k).

Myspace was the most popular social network in the United States in 2006. Facebook overtook Myspace in 2008. Myspace had approximately 68.4 million U.S. users in June 2009 according to comScore Media Metrix.

Myspace is currently owned by News Corporation and employees 1,000 employees, after laying off 30% of its workforce in June 2009 (Wikipedia 2009). Myspace does not disclose revenues or profits separately from New Corporation (Wikipedia 2009).


 * Competitive landscape**

The primary force leading Myspace into competition is other social networks such as Facebook. Although many people who are active on social networking sites have a profile on both MySpace and Facebook, each user almost always has a preference for one site over the other. Myspace and Facebook have significant differences and so do the active users on these sites. "Neither one is necessarily better than the other, but any one individual might consider one "better" in comparison because of the different uses for each of the sites" (Myspace vs. Facebook).


 * Myspace's strategy**

From 2007 to 2008 MySpace redesigned many of the features of its site in both layout and in function. One of the first functions to be redesigned was the user home page, with features such as status updates, applications, and subscriptions being added in order to compete with Facebook. In 2008, the MySpace homepage was redesigned. MySpace Music was recreated in fall of 2008 along with an updated version of the MySpace profile (Wikipedia 2009).


 * Gen-Y implications**

Will Myspace lose some it's users if it starts to become more like facebook? It is more likely to see your parents on Facebook than on Myspace. Will the Gen Y community want to stay on Myspace if their parents become users?


 * References**

Vercillo, Kathryn. Myspace vs. Facebook. Retrieved October 1, 2009 from http://investor.newscorp.com/secfiling.cfm?filingID=1193125-09-172310.

News Corp. (2009, August 12). Annual Report. Retrieved September 27, 2009 from http://hubpages.com/hub/MySpace-vs-Facebook.

Wikipedia. Myspace. Retrieved September 28, 2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myspace.

Blog proposal
TO: Proximity social networking team FROM: Holly Strain SUBJECT: Blog Post Proposal DATE: Oct 26, 2009

I purpose that we do our blog post on the use of social networking for advertising. The post can be used to show if Gen Y users are interested in the advertising or if advertising compaies are just wasting time and money.


 * Rational**

Many advertising companies use social networking sites to get their ads out there. It is not uncommon to get on a website and see a million ads.The use of social networking sites to get Gen Y's attention is a great idea. Gen Y internet users get annoyed with pop up ads. Social networking sites allow Gen Y to look at a company's site and get news and product updates. They can also voice their opinions.


 * Sources**

I recommend an article by Jordon Mccollum, //Social Network Advertising: Annotying or Effective?//

[]

Report proposal
TO: Proximity Social Networking Team FROM: Holly Strain DATE: November 25, 2009 SUBJECT: Final Report Proposal on marketing to the Gen Y.

The problem with marketing to the Gen Y community with ads on the Internet is that they don't find them relevant. I purpose to write a report addressing the issue with marketing on the Internet to the Gen Y community and what can be done differently to market businesses effectively to reach Gen Y.


 * Need**

If Gen Y is not interested in ad's, then what gets it's attention?


 * Getting news or product updates (67%)


 * Having access to promotions (64%)


 * Viewing or downloading music or videos (41%)


 * Submitting opinions (36%)


 * Connecting with other consumers (33%)

Advertising agencies spend billions of dollars trying to market to Gen Y consumers. If they are not marketing effectively then billions of dollars are going to waste.

Clients of proximity who wish to target Gen Y consumers need this report to understand how to effectively market to Gen Y consumers.


 * Topics**

The purposed report, "How to advertise to the Gen Y community effectively," will cover the following topics:
 * Who is Gen Y?


 * How effective are internet ads to Gen Y?


 * What gets Gen Y's attention?

This report will also include attachments that show how effective advertising really is.
 * How to market to Gen Y.

Fallarme, Dave. Gen Y can ruin your brand in 24 hours. (2009, November). Retrieved November 21, 2009 from [].
 * Sources** The following items are key sources for the report.

This site reports that people who actually clicks on ads are 1) people ages 25-44; 2) sub $40,000 income; 3) frequent auctions, gambling, career services sites. It says that Gen Y are the anti clickers. They do not click on ads, they look up reviews. This site also, reports how things get popular on the internet.

Fields, Bea. Marketing to Gen Y: What you can't afford not to know. (2009, November). Retrieved November 22, 2009 from [].

Fields reports what Gen Y considers before purchasing a product or service. Gen Y does not care what a broadcaster says, they want to hear it from their friends or community. Basically, stop marketing to them and start listening to them.

Johnson, Nathania. Gen Y's Notice Social Network Ads, Claim Indifference. (2009, March 04). Retrieved November 20, 2009 from [|http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/090304-092207.]

Johnson reviews a TNT show "Trust me" about an advertising agency in Chicago. A teenage girl, who claims she is not affected by advertising, goes out and buys Nike shoes. When her father asked why she purchased them, she said, "I don't know, I just did it." The dad replied, "Just Do It. Where have I heard that before?" He reports how ads really do affect people subconsciously.

Midcomet. Gen Y Social Networking Sites Rake in Online Advertising Dollars. (2006, November 16). Retrieved November 21, 2009 from [].

Midcomet reports that advertising spending on social networking sites is expected to increase by more than 600% by 2010. Advertisers working with social networking sites needs to forge a relationship with the consumer. This site reports about advertising sales and how to connect with the Gen Y community.

Monty, Scott. Advertising to Gen Y on Social Networks. (2009, March 05). Retrieved November 19, 2009 from [].

Monty reviews a remark that Ford is "not interested in advertising on social networks." He reports that Gen Y notices the ads, but they are not relevant. He goes on to talk about what does get the Gen Y's attention and what they are interested in.

The Participatory Marketing Network. Gen Y Would Abandon Social Networks before Email or Texting. (2009, October 20). Retrieved November 20, 2009 from [].

This article reports average time spent on social networks per month. Gen Y spend more time social networking online than talking on the phone, watching TV or reading magazines.

Zoomerang. Marketing to Gen Y on Myspace. (2009, July 20). Retrieved November 20, 2009 from [].

Zoomerang reports that Gen Y now makes up over 70 million people in the U S, which equates to 20% of today’s population. To market to the MySpace generation effectively you need to listen carefully to their wants and needs and analyze their behavior.

Team conference presentation proposal
//paste team conference presentation here//

Sales letter and report prospectus


December 7, 2009 Mr. Christopher Smith, Director of Marketing Smith's Inc. 518 E. Joppa Road Towson, MD 21204

Dear Chris:

I enjoyed talking with you yesterday at Proximity’s Next Generation Media seminar regarding Smith’s Performance's need to promote its brand to Gen Y consumers. Enclosed you will find a prospectus for the report I mentioned describing advertising to Gen Y on social networks.

As you noted yesterday, Smith's Performance feels that it must establish brand identity with Gen Y now in order to sell its products. I believe Proximity can work with you to devise a comprehensive campaign that uses social networking to achieve that goal.

We can provide you with customized survey and focus group results to help shape Smith's Performance image as a high performance shop. Our faculty consultants can advise your sales force on how to position new products, and our production teams can make multi-platform ads that appeal to Gen Y. In addition, we have trained student marketers who can promote Smith's Performance Shop on social networks such as Facebook. Our research shows that using student representatives to friend social networkers is a far more effective strategy for reaching Gen Y than buying conventional banner ads.

I invite you and your staff to join us at Proximity’s Towson office for a special focus group session on Smith's Performance Gen Y brand image. After that session, you can meet with members of our group to discuss how Proximity can help you meet your marketing goals.

Sincerely, Holly Strain Associate Media Analyst

enclosure

//connecting with Gen Y using// //on-demand media// ||^  || Holly Stain
 * **//PROXIMITY//** **//reports//** || [[image:http://docs.google.com/File?id=dgc69xmq_6f3hpqh2n_b width="160" height="120"]] ||
 * ** Facebook: The New Way to Advertise **

//Social Networing Sites targeting Gen Y Will Take the Waste out of Pop Up Ads// ||
 * **//__The p__//****//__roblem__//**

Gen Y looks past internet pop up ads. They do not find them relevant. There are even programs out there to block most pop up ads. There needs to be a new way to reach out and advertise to Gen Y. ||
 * **//__Proximity’s on-demand media solution__//**

//Proximity// focus group results show that Gen Y users do not pay attention to pop up ads. They //will// pay attention to connecting with other consumes.

This report details how social networking sites attract Gen Y and how businesses can use this to their advantage to advertise. Social networking sites, such as Facebook, will be able to allow feedback from their consumers and Gen Y are interested in voicing their opinions. Facebook allows companies to broadcast news and product updates to keep Gen Y interested. || **A****vailable now at www.****proximity.****edu**