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CNBC Business magazine (@CNBC) contributing editor Colin Brown (@colinmlbrown) writes

You don't need to be BP, Toyota, News Corp, or even Tiger Woods to know how quickly ‘brand equity’ can be destroyed by screw-ups, cover-ups, and indiscretions. In the face of such PR fiascos, the accepted repair strategy has been to come clean as quickly and as contritely as possible. But in an era when corporate skeletons are subject to constant social media scrutiny, your business can suffer just as easily by being too transparent. Ask Bank of America....

Many see measurement of reputation — trust quotients, if you like — as the next big frontier on the Web. Just as Google unleashed the search potential of the Internet with its PageRank analysis that assigned a numerical weighting to every nugget of information, so a new breed of reputation brokers is starting to define Web 3.0 with the equivalent of 'PeopleRank' scores. You might think of these as Yelp ratings for people, creating a hierarchy of individuals and companies based on reputation scores....

Read this in full.

Also see Warc's (@WarcEditors) article, "Corporate Social Responsibility Could Benefit Brands" quoting Nielsen's (@NielsenWire) report, "The Global, Socially-Conscious Consumer."

Let Somersault (@smrsault) help you strategically understand your brand’s reputation management.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard; especially the Marketing/Public Relations tab.

Why would a 2-minute video (created by the Canadian forestry machinery maker Hakmet) of a machine cutting and splitting tree trunks go viral with more than 3 million views? Is it the hypnotic combination of lilting music, buzz saw noise, and captivating visual rhythm? Probably.

It reminds us of another hearty industrial company’s viral video success: Blendtec’s (@Blendtec) “Will it Blend” campaign. The video below of an iPad being destroyed in a blender has more than 13 million views. Wow.

Amber Mac‘s (@ambermac) article “The 5-Video Work Week: How to Build Your Brand On YouTube” in Fast Company’s Co.LEAD (@FastCoLead) offer tips on what makes a video successful:

·         The briefer the better; 60 seconds is best

·         Content that’s useful to the viewer

·         Keep fresh with regular updates

Read this in full.

Rico Andrade’s (@andrade_rico) article “The Rise of the Explainer Video” in TechCrunch (@TechCrunch) suggests reasons to create overview videos:

·         Increase press coverage

·         Help your fans evangelize your product

·         Improve the SEO of your site

·         Repurpose them everywhere

He says the best explainer videos answer the question “How does this product fit into my life?” or “Why should I use this?” before they answer “How does this work?”.

Read this in full.

Also see our previous blogpost “The 3 Qualities That Make A YouTube Video Go Viral.”

Contact Somersault (@smrsault) to help you produce riveting videos for your brand.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.

57% of US consumers say that they’re increasingly checking product labels to see what company is behind the product they’re buying, and the same proportion say they get annoyed when it’s not obvious what company is behind a product, according the study The Company Behind the Brand: In Reputation We Trust by Weber Shandwick (@WeberShandwick). Roughly 2 in 5 US consumers also say they hesitate to buy products when it’s not clear what company makes them, and that they do research to learn about the companies that make the products they buy.

Our study identified 6 New Realities of Corporate Reputation. Each reality serves as a reminder to business leaders that they cannot view their company’s reputation and their product brands as separately as they once did. Aligning and integrating both optimizes their respective strengths to achieve strong business results.

1.    Corporate brand is as important as the product brand(s).

2.    Corporate reputation provides product quality assurance.

3.    Any disconnect between corporate and product reputation triggers sharp consumer reaction.

4.    Products drive discussion, with reputation close behind.

5.    Consumers shape reputation instantly.

6.    Corporate reputation contributes to company market value.

“In this fast-moving information age, consumers can now readily connect the dots between the brand they buy and the company behind the brand,” says Leslie Gaines-Ross, Chief Reputation Strategist, Weber Shandwick. “Whereas it has long been known that a strong brand shines a light on a company’s reputation, it is now clear beyond a shadow of a doubt that a strong company reputation adds an undeniable brilliance to the brand.”

What impacts consumers’ opinion of a company?

·         Word of mouth (88%)

·         Online reviews (83%)

·         Online search results (81%)

·         News sources (79%)

·         Company websites (74%)

·         Awards and rankings (63%)

·         Leadership communications (59%)

·         Advertising (56%)

·         Social networks (49%) (are companies not embracing social media in a way that fully resonates with the public?)

Read this in full.

Contact Somersault (@smrsault) to help you identify blue ocean strategy for your brand.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.; especially the Branding and Marketing/Public Relations tabs.

This video, highlighting the history of the WWII British government poster “Keep Calm and Carry On,” has gotten nearly 1 million views in less than a month. The original war slogan was all but forgotten until a poster was discovered in 2000 in a box of books bought by Barter Books (@BarterBooks), a large second-hand bookshop in north-east England. In a bit of alchemy, the store has turned those 5 words into word-of-mouth gold.

Also see our previous blogpost “The 3 Qualities That Make A YouTube Video Go Viral.”

Let Somersault (@smrsault) help you strategically communicate your brand message.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.

Infographic by MBA Online (@MBAOnline).

Simply Zesty (@SimplyZesty) / Simply Viral (@simplyviral) scouted this TED (@tedtalks) talk of YouTube (@YouTube) trends manager Kevin Allocca (@shockallocca) speaking at a TEDYouth (@TEDYouth) event on the 3 reasons a video goes viral:

·         Tastemakers: when influential people discover new videos and introduce those videos to their followers

·         Participation: when viewers of a video become motivated enough to produce another version of the video

·         Unexpectedness: when a video contains surprises, especially in a humorous manner.

Allocca says over 48 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute.

Also see our other blogposts about viral videos:

• "P&G Wins Hearts & Top Marks with Olympic Video Spots"
• "Video: What a Wonderful World"
• "The Art of Hand-Bound Books"
• "McDonald's Behind-the-Scenes Video Goes Viral"
• "Seeding, Not Quality, is Vital to Make Videos Viral"
• "What Makes a Story Popular and Viral?"
• “How ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ Reveals the True Meaning of Viral Content”
• “Infographic: Understanding Viral Content Marketing”
• "A Video About a Poster Masks a Bookstore's Promotion"
• "Unlikely Videos Go Viral"
• "LEGO Celebrates 80th Birthday With Animated 'Short' Film"
• "Video: The Viral Benefits of a Satisfied Customer"
• "Video: PSA Uses Whimsy to Communicate Grim Message"

What principles have you identified that contribute to a video going viral? Write your comments below.

Let Somersault (@smrsault) help you strategize your brand’s social media communication.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.

According to a new survey of technology experts, teens and young adults brought up from childhood with a continuous connection to each other and to information will be nimble, quick-acting multitaskers who count on the Internet as their external brain and who approach problems in a different way from their elders.

Many of the experts surveyed by Elon University’s (@elonuniversity) Imagining the Internet Center and The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project (@pewinternet) say the effects of hyperconnectivity and the always-on lifestyles of young people will be mostly positive between now and 2020.

But the experts also predict this generation will exhibit a thirst for instant gratification and quick fixes, a loss of patience, and a lack of deep-thinking ability due to what one referred to as “fast-twitch wiring.”

Survey respondents say it’s vital to reform education and emphasize digital literacy. And a notable number say trends are leading to a future in which most people are shallow consumers of information, in danger of mirroring George Orwell’s 1984 of control by powerful interests in an age of entertaining distractions.

Read this report in full.

Also see our previous blogpost “Introducing Generation C: Americans 18-34 Are the Most Connected.”

How does this research and these predictions help you determine the future needs of your consumers and the ways you can publish life-changing content to meet those needs? Write your comments below.

Contact Somersault (@smrsault) to help you identify blue ocean strategy for your brand.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard.

Born sometime between the launch of the VCR and the commercialization of the Internet, Americans 18-34 are redefining media consumption with their unique embrace of all things digital. According to Nielsen (@NielsenWire) and NM Incite’s (@nmincite) US Digital Consumer Report, this group — dubbed “Generation C” by Nielsen — is taking their personal connection — with each other and content — to new levels, new devices, and new experiences like no other age group.

The latest Census reports that Americans 18-34 make up 23% of the US population, yet they represent an outsized portion of consumers watching online video (27%), visiting social networking/blog sites (27%), owning tablets (33%) and using a smartphone (39%). Their ownership and use of connected devices makes them incredibly unique consumers, representing both a challenge and opportunity for marketers and content providers alike. Generation C is engaging in new ways and there are more touch points for marketers to reach them.

Access the report (registration required).

Also see our blogpost "Millennials Will Benefit & Suffer Due to Their Hyperconnected Lives."

Contact Somersault (@smrsault) to help you navigate the changing demographics in today’s publishing world.

And be sure to bookmark and use daily the SomersaultNOW online dashboard; especially the Research tab.

Chart by Chart of the Day (@chartoftheday)

Business Insider SAI (@SAI) reports that Kirsten Kowalski (@ddkportraits), a lawyer with a passion for photography, browsed Pinterest's (@Pinterest) Terms of Use and found Pinterest's members are solely responsible for what they pin and repin. They must have explicit permission from the owner to post everything.

“I immediately thought of the ridiculously gorgeous images I had recently pinned from an outside website, and, while I gave the other photographer credit, I most certainly could not think of any way that I either owned those photos or had a license, consent or release from the photographer who owned them,” Kristen writes.

Kristen turned to federal copyright laws and found a section on fair use. Copyrighted work can only be used without permission when someone is criticizing it, commenting on it, reporting on it, teaching about it, or conducting research. Repinning doesn't fall under any of those categories.

A court case allowed thumbnail images to be considered fair use, but Pinterest lifts the entire image, not a thumbnail.

If that didn't scare Kristen enough, the all caps section of Pinterest's Terms of Use did:

“YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE ENTIRE RISK ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SITE, APPLICATION, SERVICES AND SITE CONTENT REMAINS WITH YOU.”

What's more, Pinterest places all blame and potential legal fees on its users.

Basically, if a photographer sues you for pinning an image illegally on Pinterest, the user must not only pay for his or her lawyer, they must also pay for Pinterest's lawyer. In addition, the defendant must pay all charges against him or herself, along with all of Pinterest's charges.

Kristen likens Pinterest to Napster as an enabler of illegal activity. It wasn't just Napster that went down – 12 year old girls who downloaded music were sued too.

She concluded her post inviting someone from Pinterest to call her. Someone did. The founder. Read about it at “My Date with Ben Silbermann — Following Up and Drying My Tears.” Bottom line: She writes Silbermann said “some changes are on the way in the very near future.”

Also see Adweek’s (@Adweek) “Brands Pinning it on Pinterest” and “Pinterest: The New Facebook for Lifestyle Magazines.”

Somersault (@smrsault) is beginning a Pinterest board. What should we put on it?

Infographic by Modea (@Modea)

Business Insider SAI’s (@SAI) Chart of the Day (@chartoftheday) above depicts book popularity on Goodreads (@goodreads) by members listing the books they’re reading or would like to read, and the spike a book receives after it's mentioned by NPR (@NPR) or The New York Times (@nytimes).

Let Somersault (@smrsault) help your brand’s publicity.

And bookmark our SomersaultNOW online dashboard; especially see the Marketing/PR tab.