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Today is Palm Sunday, which begins Holy Week (or Passion Week) — the week that commemorates Jesus’ death and resurrection. Bible Gateway Blog (@biblegateway) — has designed a new Infographic (#infographic) that harmonizes the 4 Gospel accounts of Holy Week and lets you examine the “who,” “what,” and “where” of events leading up to and through Easter. Follow the lines in the chart to see at a glance what people were doing, where they were, and whom they were with at any point during the week.

See the Infographic in full.

Also see Somersault’s Infographic of 2011, the year to celebrate the significant and life-changing milestones achieved in the areas of publishing, technology, and innovation.

Initial findings from Project Reconnect, an ongoing survey based on a global poll of parents and teenagers, found a “remarkable” level of agreement across territories and age groups over which features of online ads are acceptable - and which are not.

The researchers, who questioned consumers in four key territories - Brazil, China, the UK, and the US - found that ads offering a “tangible benefit” for users are acceptable - as are ads that are “different, fun, engaging, and/or offer something extra.”

But the survey also revealed that people “instinctively” describe online advertising in potentially negative terms – “pop-ups, banners, and spam.”

Generally, there is a shared belief there is a “time and place” for online ads, and that advertisers should not overstep boundaries and “pester” consumers.

Read this report in full.

1. Creativity is BETWEEN Us (Not Within Us). Creativity emerges out of relationships; it’s the tension between different ideas and perspectives and so it is risky to define it as an ability that we inherently possess.

2. Creativity Must be Externalized. Creativity is driven by the ability to externalize ideas in a wide variety of forms.

3. Creativity is Driven by Social Dynamics. It comes out of a collaborative environment. How can we ever be creative without feeling [a] human connection and without being able to bounce our ideas off of each other?

Read this article in full.

Chief Marketer (@chief_marketer) reports that “more than half of the moms responding to a study on parenting and mobile use say they first bought a smartphone as a result of having a child. Fifty-one percent admit they’re ‘addicted’ to their smartphone. And their favorite feature is the phone camera.”

Those are some of the findings of the 21st Century Mobile Mom Report compiled by BabyCenter.com (@BabyCenter). The report, built from a behavior study of more than 5,000 moms and a deep-dive study of a subset of 23 specific moms, finds that overall adoption of smartphones among mothers has risen 64% in the last 2 years. At 59% ownership, moms are currently 18% more likely to own a phone that can download apps than the general population.

Here are the study’s highlights:

• 78% admit they “love” their smartphone.

• 51% of Moms are addicted to their smartphone.

• 53% say the purchase was directly related to becoming a mom.

• Mom’s #1 feature is the camera.

• #2 feature is video capabilities.

• #3 feature is apps with more half having 10 or more apps.

• 25% of the apps on a mom’s phone are for her children.

• 68% say of Moms know how to use most of the features.

• 75% of Moms claim to troubleshoot their own phone.

• 33% use it for health and wellness (tracking family health & research).

• Moms top social activities are: newsfeeds, status updates, and reading answers to posted questions.

• 68% use their smartphone while shopping.

• 62% of moms use shopping apps to research or compare prices.

• Moms are 248% more likely than the average adult to text friends then call them.

• 46% claim to have taken an action after seeing a mobile ad on their phone.

• 29% say they like to scan bar codes and QR codes for further information on a topic.

Read the article in full.

Also read our blogpost "25% of Toddlers Have Used a Smartphone."

How will knowing this about today’s mothers influence how you publish content for them? Let Somersault help. And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.

Religion News Service (@ReligionNewsNow) reminds us that Handel's oratorio Messiah was first performed on this day in 1742. Back then, the Dublin Journal wrote a review (originating social buzz), saying, "Words are wanting to express the exquisite Delight it afforded to the admiring crouded Audience.”

If you’ll recall last Christmas season, as a way to promote Alphabet Photography, Inc., a flash mob performed the Hallelujah Chorus at Seaway Mall in Welland, ON. The video of that event has now enjoyed more than 32 million views on YouTube.

Remember what elements comprise a successful viral video? What viral video can Somersault help you produce?

By the way, be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard created especially for publishing and marketing professionals.

The board of Thomas Nelson has promoted Mark Schoenwald (formerly the president and COO) to the position of president and CEO. Michael Hyatt (@MichaelHyatt), president and CEO of Thomas Nelson for the past 6 years (photo above), will remain as the company’s chairman, while he pursues writing, speaking, and other business interests. On his blog, he offers the following advice any leader should remember:

1. Your position is a role, not your identity.

2. Your position is temporary, not permanent.

3. Your position is a privilege, not a right.

4. Your position is about faithfulness, not achievement.

5. Your position is about them, not you.

6. Your position is about stewardship, not ownership.

7. Your position will require more than you can provide on your own.

8. Take care of yourself.

Read his blog post in full.

National Library Week (@AtYourLibrary) (#nlw11) is the annual event to promote local libraries and the quality service they provide to their communities. Library trends of the past year are detailed in The State of America’s Libraries, 2011, just released by the American Library Association (@alanews). Here are a few highlights reported in American Libraries magazine (@amlibraries):

·         The availability of wireless Internet in public libraries is approaching 85%, and about two-thirds of them extend wireless access outside the library. Computer usage at public libraries continues to increase.

·         Almost all academic libraries offer ebooks, as do more than two-thirds of public libraries. For most libraries, ebooks are only still a small percentage of circulated items – but represent the fastest-growing segment.

·         12% of academic libraries circulate preloaded e-reading devices, while 26% are considering it. (Kindle tops the device chart at 81%, followed by Sony at 34%, iPad at 28%, and Nook at 22%.)

·         6% of school libraries circulate preloaded e-reading devices, while 36% are considering it. (The Sony Reader leads the way at 64%, Kindle followed at 47%, Nook at 15%, and iPad at 4%.)

·         5% of public libraries circulate preloaded e-reading devices, while 24% are considering it. Kindle is the leader here.

·         Among academic libraries, social sciences is the discipline most likely to offer ebooks (83%), followed by science at 82%, technology (80%), humanities (77%), medicine (69%), and law (51%).

·         In school libraries, children’s fiction top the ebook charts at 51%, followed by reference (42%), children’s nonfiction (39%), children’s picture books (34%), and young adult nonfiction (24%) and fiction (23%).

·         In public libraries, adult nonfiction leads the way (86%), with adult fiction at 84%, bestsellers at 76%, young adult fiction at 69%, and children’s fiction at 56%. Young adult nonfiction, children’s nonfiction, reference, and children’s picture books “score” less than 50%.

·         A battle over the future of widely used ebooks was joined in March, when HarperCollins announced that it will not allow its ebooks to be checked out from a library more than 26 times, raising the possibility that ebooks that are not repurchased would be available at the library for only about a year. The ALA issued its response.

Read this in full.

Rebecca Miller of Library Journal magazine (@LibraryJournal) shares 10 favorite library locations as attractions in and of themselves:

·         Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, New York Public Library, New York City

·         Fayetteville Public Library, Fayetteville, AR

·         Seattle Central Library, Seattle, WA

·         Geisel Library, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA

·         Thomas Jefferson Building, Library of Congress, Washington, DC

·         Weippe Public Library, Weippe, ID

·         Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago Public Library, Chicago, IL

·         Boston Athenaeum, Boston, MA

·         Deadwood Public Library, Deadwood, SD

·         Central Denver Public Library, Denver, CO

Read about these library locations in full.

As a publisher, agent, or author, how are you networking with your local library? Comment below.

Takeover ads are a growing marketing tactic, particularly on major sites such as YouTube. Takeover ads take up all available ad space on the homepage or dedicated landing page of a designated site. They usually involve action or motion, and include an element of entertainment.

For example, Google Chrome’s takeover ad highlights the artists and themes it’s pushing to make the Web a little less grey. It takes you on a journey from a standard grey browser through to the Google Chrome themes. More examples are shown on BannerBlog (@bannerblog).

What do you think? Are takeover ads too intrusive? Are they a fad or will they become a standard? What strategic goal do they accomplish within a media schedule? Would you use them?

Today is the 57th anniversary of the most boring day in the last century (Sunday, April 11, 1954). A computer scientist used the search engine True Knowledge (@trueknowledge) to search 300 million compiled facts and determine this date had "the fewest significant births, significant deaths, or significant events" of any other day. A pretty innovative way to get social media buzz about the True Knowledge brand! Read about it. Also see NPR’s coverage.

You haven’t heard Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring like this before! The music is the centerpiece of an innovative viral video (2 million views) for NTT Docomo’s Touch Wood Phone. Adweek (@adweek) gets behind-the-scenes in this article. 

An article by bhatnaturally (@bhatnaturally) explains what makes a successful viral video:

When it comes to TV commercials, placing it on YouTube either before or after airing it has become a default option. Some videos are placed on YouTube with an express intent of making them viral. Unfortunately you cannot ‘make’ a viral video; you can only hope the video will ‘go’ viral. Going beyond mere hope, certain aspects about the ads can help it to go viral. Like in the Touch Wood ad.

·         At first pass, it’s riveting. You are intrigued to find out what’s going to happen next.

·         There are certain moments in the film which have repeat value -- for me it was when the balls go off the bridge and fall in to the ‘net’ on the sides.

·         There is a reward for the viewer’s attention and engagement in terms of a message.

·         It evokes a ‘wow, that’s cool’ reaction.

What viral video can Somersault help you produce?