When Foldit was first released in 2008, the online game challenged users to solve a series of complex 3D problems built around intricate structures with multiple layers. These models were based on protein structures and the gamers' problem-solving efforts have since helped to revolutionize the way medical researchers look at amino acid chains.

We can hardly expect every digital game or collaborative problem-solving effort to hold the same awe-inspiring effect as Foldit — but there's something to be said about incorporating our human experiences into the digital environment as we continue to explore new technologies.

The Starfield installation by Lab212 is a wonderfully effective example of how motion-sensor technology can be used to emulate nature. Using openFrameworks and Kinect software, the installation allowed participants to sit on a swing underneath an interactive galaxy of stars while controlling the view of the night sky by how high or fast they swung.

Meanwhile, Le3 Paris took to the streets by setting a digital tiger loose in Paris. This creative project, titled Golden Tiger, enabled them to try out new street mapping and 3D projection tools.

With the increasing sophistication around interactive technology comes a new pool of projects attempting to replicate our natural environment. Like the Starfield installation, Japanese artist Ryoichi Kurokawa's Octfalls is a strong example of one such literal interpretation. Octfalls was created as part of the 54th Venice Biennale and it is an installation that recreates a waterfall through HD screens and a series of complex audio loops. The audio loops are arranged to challenge the audience's sense of perception and to allow them to experience a highly stylized digital version of what it's like to stand by a waterfall.

Not surprisingly, members of the younger generation are also turning to the digital space to try out new methods of learning and communication. Inspired by their seventh grade science teacher's size comparison videos on cells, 14 year-old twin brothers Cary and Michael Huang created an interactive and scalable view of the universe that shows users a visual comparison between items ranging from atoms to the Andromeda Galaxy.

As we evolve within the digital environment, it is only natural that we continue to incorporate elements from our physical surroundings to help us explore this new world. While only some of the projects will lead to incredible opportunities such as Foldit, they will all provide countless means of creative expression. And that can't be a bad thing.

Kumiko Ide is a digital strategist at Tribal DDB Vancouver.

Return to Direct by Design.

The first half of 2012 is behind us and during the past months, we witnessed — thanks especially to the Super Bowl — marketing that upped the integration and engagement ante. Marketers ignited consumers to talk, share and become part of a pop-cultural moment — more than merely a championship football game — that crossed generations.

Beyond just a showcase of great creative commercials, the Super Bowl has grown into a live stage that communicates with more than 110 million people who are most likely watching the game while they're texting or tweeting on their smartphone or exploring the Web on their tablet or laptop. Because of multi-screen viewing, impression numbers exponentially grow to the billions among this attentive, live audience — a marketer's dream for executing seamless integration.

Integration is engagement tool and occurs when strategy and messaging are aligned across every communication platform. As the Super Bowl revealed, successful integration depends on emotionally connecting with consumers and fostering an honest and approachable bond between customer and brand.

Take for example Chrysler's “Halftime in America” commercial. The two-minute Super Bowl ad wasn't released pregame. It starred Clint Eastwood who emotionally struck a chord with consumers by delivering an equal dose of optimism and nationalism. This commercial successfully generated more press coverage than any other in-game commercial.

On the other hand, several successful Super Bowl marketers began the conversation about their Super Bowl work days if not weeks before the game with an arsenal of pregame content that prolonged interest before, during and after the game.

Having the good fortune to work with Honda on Super Bowl this year, I put together a roundup of key takeaways that any marketer can adapt to their brand communications:

• Think 360 degrees. Every marketing discipline must be in sync with your brand platform idea. This means that print, TV, online, mobile and social should have one voice and dotted lines to connect one to another. Consider the value of hashtags. Budweiser included #makeitplatinum in its Super Bowl commercials which became a trending topic soon after the TV spot aired during the game.
  
  
• It takes a village. Once your brand platform idea is established, gather every voice that can propel your message. Consider those who handle collateral or search marketing, digital media, PR or those responsible for user experience. One team, one voice.
  
  
• One budget bucket. Integrated communication doesn't thrive if there's infighting, especially when it comes to budgets. One budget allows your one team to work in lockstep.
  
  
• Don't be afraid to fail. Risky moves can pay dividends. Agencies must foster client relationships based on trust that allows for bold ideas to be tested. This year, our team released a 10-second anonymous YouTube teaser for Honda's CR-V Super Bowl spot more than a week before the big game. We used this teaser as a platform to build excitement for the extended-version of “Matthew's Day Off” that launched several days before the big game. The teaser attracted mass media attention, garnering coverage on every major network.
  
  
• Spark continued dialogue. A strong brand platform idea will allow marketers to communicate with consumers wherever they are naturally inclined to go for information. Plan for additional content for unique 140-character quips on Twitter, for sharing on Facebook or to visually connect with consumers by pinning content that speaks to their passions on Pinterest. See how Whole Foods is featuring boards on gardening, recycling and “good karma products” thereby tapping into the lifestyle of their customers.

The biggest media event of year is just one example of how it's not only about great creative, but also about using that creative as a platform for driving intrigue and conversation. Ultimately the goal is for this relationship with the consumer to grow and yield loyalty and preference for your brand.

Joe Baratelli is EVP and executive creative director at full-service advertising agency RPA.

If 2011 was the breakout year for mobile marketing, then 2012 looks to be the year brands successfully bring video into the mobile marketing mix. Increases in smartphone and tablet adoption combined with faster mobile broadband speeds mean the market is ready for video on-the-go.

In fact, consumers are already accustomed to watching video on the small screen. Thanks to mobile entertainment apps like Netflix, YouTube, and HBO GO, and video-rich mobile sites like ESPN, the consumer behavioral shift has already taken place. Within one week of launching, the HBO GO app was downloaded over one million times. ESPN, who has been the #1 sports destination on mobile devices since 2007, now has more than 20 million mobile viewers and has stated that mobile is the company's fourth-largest network.

By the end of 2011, mobile video traffic was 52% of all traffic, with more than 30 million U.S. consumers already watching video on their mobile phones. In order to take advantage of mobile video, marketers need to be aware of opportunities emerging in the mobile space.

As technologies evolve, new marketing channels are opening up for delivering highly targeted, high-impact video ads to a growing base of mobile viewers. Need examples? Here are three innovative strategies to consider for your 2012 mobile marketing campaigns.

In-game video ads

Still in the early phases of monetization, mobile apps have relied primarily on paid downloads and display ads to bring in cash. However, as publishers become savvier about the advertising options available, there's increasing experimentation with video sponsorship. Just as video broke through the display ad market on PC browsers, it is now entering the mobile app world. For example, the ad-supported version of the popular mobile game Words with Friends now includes video ads among the commercial messages it inserts between player moves. These “unskippable” video ads take advantage of a captive audience during game play.

The value of these high-impact in-game video ads is such that innovations in the category are emerging quickly. New technology makes it possible to interact with mobile video ads without ever leaving the primary game experience. This technology makes in-app video ads “tappable,” allowing users to launch a landing page for more product information without exiting the app to go to a mobile browser. Advertisers gain the opportunity for deeper engagement through interactive video, while publishers increase the value of ad inventory within the mobile app domain.

Location-based video marketing

Location-based applications are not only a new channel for online marketers; they also provide a unique targeting opportunity for reaching out to a very select consumer audience. Location awareness means marketers can deliver messages to consumers when they're near a physical point of purchase. That targeting by location — combined with growth in mobile video viewing — creates a powerful new communications channel.

There are a few different ways advertisers can use video to take advantage of new location-based apps. One is to buy video ad placements strictly based on geography. Another is to run video ads with a local incentive, like NBC did when it ran a trailer of America's Next Great Restaurant through LivingSocial. Targets were offered an additional discount on restaurant vouchers from the daily deal site in return for watching the NBC video.

Finally, advertisers can use video in enhanced directory listings available through location-based apps like Yelp. To date, Yelp does not offer the ability to publish video in directory listings on its mobile apps, but it does promote video use in the listings on its website. And Yelp's CEO has promised that mobile will play a major role as the company heads toward a planned IPO in 2012.

Social video goes mobile

Online video testimonials made it big when retail giant Amazon introduced the feature in 2007. However, this type of user-generated video hasn't played a large role in the mobile space. Despite the fact that mobile devices offer one of the best channels for sharing content, many marketers haven't extended support for video reviews to their mobile browsers and apps.

Fortunately, social networks are opening up a new avenue for video marketing. Take ShoeDazzle. The shoe company, cofounded by Kim Kardashian, started soliciting short customer video reviews in 2011. Rather than simply post those videos on its main site, ShoeDazzle also distributes its new video content via YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. Through those social networking channels, ShoeDazzle is taking its user-generated video mobile. It's a simple solution to a previously difficult distribution problem, and for ShoeDazzle, it's proven highly effective.

Social networking channels are also an opportunity for marketers to make their viewers more involved and active participants and to foster a two-way communication between audiences and brands.

For example, when viewers visit the CENTURY 21 mobile-optimized microsite that was built by Cyberitas, they can watch the company's recent Super Bowl commercial featuring Donald Trump, Dion Sanders, and Apollo Ono, as well as a video highlighting the making of the commercial and six additional versions of the ad. Viewers are prompted to vote for the CENTURY 21 commercial, which brings them to You Tube's Ad Blitz, where viewers can watch, vote and comment on their favorite 2012 Super Bowl commercials.

As consumers turn more and more to mobile video for entertainment, they are also establishing new behavioral patterns that benefit the marketing community. Mobile video opens up new marketing channels that are both targeted and engaging. This is a trend in its early stages, but one that offers marketers immediate opportunities — and promises to become even more compelling in the months ahead.

David Rowley is VP of products and services, mobility and monetization solutions, at Limelight Networks.

There's no doubt about the fact that personalization has changed the landscape for direct marketers. We're helping companies achieve a robust return on investment every day with personalized acquisition and retention campaigns.

I would argue, however, that personalization is beneficial everywhere in an organization. For me, this recently became very apparent. I received an automated voicemail on my home phone from my cable company (redacted because when I say the name now, I usually precede it with an expletive). The message said, “This is an urgent message from [CableCo] about the status of your account. You must call us within 24 hours. Our office hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday to Friday. This is urgent. Please call.”

It was past 8 p.m. but, robocall or not, it was concerning. Had there been some issue I was unaware of? Maybe even identity theft? Who knew. It was only later when I checked the pile of mail on the hall table that it became clear the “issue” was more mundane. Sure enough, there was a bill from [CableCo] and it showed last month's bill as past due. Yep, missed a payment. I paid the bill online that night and planned on calling [CableCo] in the morning to explain, apologize and ask them to please remove the late charge if they would. So far, embarrassing, but not terrible.

I should point out here that I have had the same cable company for well over 10 years. My understanding is that the number one issue in the telecommunications business is churn. I'd say that with the cable bill always going up and our longevity, we probably qualify as a “good,” if not loyal, customers. On top of that, I've never missed a payment before. Ever. Chalk it up to the frugal Midwestern upbringing, but I think most companies would actually appreciate our business.

My morning call to them was first greeted with intense scrutiny and security questions. OK, I don't know the secret password (who does?) so they can't speak to me. I was finally able to explain that they don't have to talk, just listen. I don't want information; I want to give it. I explained that the bill had been paid and asked that they remove the late fees. End of conversation.

Tuesday afternoon. Identical automated voicemail. OK, computer systems cross in the mail. Wednesday, same thing. When I call Thursday, after another round of security questions for which I still don't know the answers. I explain everything all over again, at which point the woman verifies that indeed the companies showed the bill as paid and that they would reverse the late charges. Yeah!

Saturday my “Notice of Service Suspension” arrives in the mail. I have to admit, there's nothing like a threatening letter to make you feel like a valued customer.

Now, I know companies need to save money and automated calls save money. But how about adding some personalization to recognize, even in an automated call, that I pay my bills and this is most likely a simple error? I know companies need to be paid. Collections are important. But how about setting up rules to identify the difference between customers, so the process of collections is personalized based on payment history?

More than anything, I know companies need customers, particularly ones who pay their bills regularly and stay with them even through weekly offers from the competition. I know [CableCo] has records of my payments. I know they know how long I've been a customer. I know they can make decisions based on this information. Maybe if they'd used the information they had, they could have personalized this experience and received a much more positive reaction from me.

Should personalization be used everywhere? I would ask my [CableCo], but I'm busy considering an alternative.

John Sisson is president of Universal Wilde. Learn more about Universal Wilde via the company's blog.

Return to Direct by Design.

Real-time bidding (RTB) has taken a strong hold in traditional online advertising by letting advertisers buy an audience as opposed to buying available inventory only. RTB is proven to deliver stronger ROI and make ad buys more effective. As the use of mobile handsets and tablets grows in popularity, more and more marketers are turning to mobile advertising as a means by which to reach consumers that are constantly on-the-go — but marketers are of course also looking for a return on investment.

Enter RTB for mobile.

Mobile RTB helps advertisers bid on the exact impressions they want and enables publishers to gain from more competitive bids while arming themselves with analytics and management tools. Many marketers, however, have neither heard of RTB, understand how it works in the mobile space or what can be done to make it even more effective.

Average pricing models result in average placements

Lets start with a basic understanding of how RTB works. RTB gives publishers access to new sources of revenue through a competitive auction, while enabling them to retain complete control and transparency.

What does this mean? Most mobile ad buys are done on a blind basis. When you buy traffic from a large exchange, you're not typically told where your ads are placed. Placements are based on an average price and blanket placement. Additionally, if you want to target specific sites through networks, the process is rather cumbersome.
With RTB, marketers can base placements on a number of factors while also knowing exactly where the ad will be placed. This all starts with a bidding process and pricing is set based on the buyer's desire to have their ad appear in a specific place. Therefore a marketer is setting a specific price for each placement as opposed to paying one average price. This model results in more targeted placement and a more successful campaign.

The difference is in the data

In the RTB space most bidding companies focus on getting traffic solely based on conversion and click-through rate. While this works and offers marketers much better placements, there is more that can be done to increase the effectiveness of mobile RTB advertising.

When you monitor activity from impression to click-through and beyond to conversion — while also routing to call centers or tracking purchase history — you end up with a consolidated and accurate chain of data that allows you to price impressions more accurately. Why should marketers pay for advertising that doesn't provide an actual ROI or offer them important data that will help with future media buys and campaign decision making?

All marketers should know which mobile websites consumers are accessing, when the best times to reach them are, and what device they are surfing on. Having a tracking system that allows you to see who best converts for a specific offer and how to optimize your campaign based on device, carrier, site, keyword, demographic, location and more is key in the mobile RTB world and helps marketers create more effective campaigns.

RTB can be confusing, so think about this simple equation: When you bid to get the right price and the right placement and then use consolidated campaign data to optimize, campaigns are more effective and you end up with a much better return on investment.

Who could want more than that?

Jason Ciancette is president and founder of Liquid Wireless, a subsidiary of Publishers Clearing House.

Return to Direct by Design.

Mobile is big. It's far-reaching, ever present and integrated into our everyday lives.

Marketers also realize the potential of mobile for engaging customers and driving revenue. They're developing new ways to incorporate mobile calls to action and content into their omni-channel marketing mix. However, when it comes to the link between mobile and e-commerce, many are missing out on leveraging the power of immediacy and relevancy that the mobile device can empower.

Think about the last time you went shopping. Perhaps you, or a fellow shopper, scanned a QR code to find additional information about a product and to read reviews. Maybe you pulled out your iPhone and did a quick price comparison before placing an item in your cart or you opted to purchase the product online at a cheaper price. Mobile played a role, but the experience from both retailer and product was very passive in leveraging the power of this second screen. If there were mobile calls to action, they were “click/scan/download for more information” — but if they leveraged the right technology, it could be: “Buy this now.”

Consider the Super Bowl this past February. A number of commercials incorporated the mobile application Shazam. The app recognizes Shazam-enabled commercials by sound and allows viewers to pull up content on their mobile devices. Again, most marketers featured passive content such as links to mobile-optimized sites or social campaigns. This was the perfect opportunity for brands to link real-time media directly to their e-commerce efforts by using Shazam to drive to a brand's mobile optimized e-commerce site, where users could then have purchased the items they were watching on their TV screen.

By leveraging real-time relevant media, optimizing mobile calls to action and simplifying the mobile commerce experience, marketers have the potential to drive significant program ROI. This aligns with findings from a recent Oracle survey of e-commerce professionals from leading retail, travel and consumer manufacturing organizations who identified one, the user experience; two, mobile programs; and three e-commerce platforms as the top three areas of investment for 2012.

Whether you're attempting to engage consumers in brick-and-mortar locations or while they're watching TV from the comfort of their homes, it's important to use mobile as a continuation of the primary brand interaction, rather than simply replicating it. It should be a seamless customer experience that enhances, but doesn't compete with, the primary interaction.

Scott Richards is VP of emerging media and technology at Epsilon.

Check out our special April 2012 mobile commerce issue for more on this topic.

In five years, will tablets and smartphones surpass PCs in e-commerce sales? Yes. And no, it's not because I have digital strategy in my title. It's because the numbers, the competition and the consumer says so. I think I can make this case with my tablet tied behind my back.

First the numbers: With smartphone sales outpacing PC sales for the first time during the last quarter of 2011 and some projections showing as many as 1.5 billion smartphone units sold in 2016, it's not hard to see how the volume of devices in hands will impact the volume of e-commerce sales.

First place in the sales race will probably go back and forth for a little while, but sooner rather than later there will be some distance between the number of smartphones sold and the number of PCs.

There are a number of factors behind this. Some are economic — smartphones are getting cheaper and bringing more to the party; while others are just plain behavioral. Smartphones are becoming appendages, personal assistants, even members of the family — at least until the next newer version comes out.

More competition for PCs: Consumers are questioning whether their next “computer” should actually be a tablet or a PC and the number of PCs sold will continue to take hits as the tablet market evolves. Also vying for consideration is the smart TV. The idea of replacing your “home computer” with a smart TV is only going to pick up steam and further erode the number and use of PCs.

The consumer: Leading up to the holidays last year, approximately 66% of people who own a smartphone “shopped” with it in some way. Now, “shopping” can mean anything from comparing and searching to locating a retailer. But if consumers are doing that, is actually buying something with their phones that far away? A comScore Mobile Retail Advisor report stated that 38% of smartphone owners have used their phone to make a purchase — and that number is only going to go up.

People are already buying things on their phones just about everywhere. That same comScore report states that 56% of the people who made a purchase with their phone did so at home, while an Ipsos and PayPal study said more than 60%. So much for the PC's home court advantage.

There is also a self-fulfilling prophecy as retailers come to embrace the idea that consumers increasingly want to buy things on their phones. Retailers will make it easier to buy on phones and then more consumers will do it. Add the increasing trend of social commerce to the mix and you have yet another huge impact on when and where they buy. The increasing amount of time “socialites” are interacting with their networks on mobile devices and the rapid pace with which brands are embracing the idea and ability to buy in that space will only add to the popularity of mobile commerce.

But here's the real kicker — the idea of mobile commerce expands well beyond buying things with your mobile device. Downloading coupons, using your Starbucks app to buy coffee, making travel arrangements on the fly, finding products while in the store, getting input from your social network on a product while staring at the display right in front of you — all of this will increasingly have an impact on “commerce.”

And the mobile device, no matter what it is, will be at the center of that ecosystem because consumers are at the center — and they never go anywhere without their phones.

Ken Johns is SVP of digital strategy at Brunner.

See what our readers had to say on this topic in the April 2012 issue.

I am not in favor of dictatorship, but I am beginning to think that maybe it does have one or two attractive characteristics.

Our move from 285 Madison Avenue to 3 Columbus Circle will drive transformative change in our working environment. We will move from an office environment to an open plan. We will have less personal space and more collaborative space.

I think the changes will make us sharper, smarter and more fun. But I learned a long time ago that organizational change — any change — is hard for people to embrace.

So it is no surprise that as we start to consult with our colleagues and New York network partners about ideas for the new office space, I hear two refrains. The first is, “This is very cool.” And the second tends to be, “But we are different — it won't work for us.”

And that's when my newfound dictatorial tendencies kick in. “JFDI,” as an old creative director of mine used to say, is the phrase that floats through my mind.

So far I've resisted the dictatorial urge. It's easy to impose uniformity on everyone, but it's more interesting and creative to embrace the diversity of opinion and to search for ways to allow everyone to adapt the space to meet their individual needs. When everyone feels the space belongs to them, and not to “the Man,” we will have created a more energetic and exciting agency.

Embracing individuality — and not imposing uniformity — is the right thing to do, but it is exhausting.

So this is fair warning: If anyone else wants to explain to me why the design that works for a thousand other people does not work for them, they should be prepared to encounter an undemocratic response …

Nick Moore is chief creative officer and EVP at Wunderman New York.

This is the final installment a four-part series.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Complete transparency: I'm a creative. Math isn't my thing.

So I was a trifle disconcerted when I realized the design process for our new building at 3 Columbus Circle doesn't begin with fabric swatches and color palettes. Instead, we've been discussing stack plans, storage and square footage.

It's the oldest truth in design: form follows function. Before we make our new space cool, we have to make it work. That means answering a lot of math questions.

Have we got space for everyone? Or at least, has everyone who is in the office on any given day got somewhere to sit? A lot of our people are on the move, so do they really need a full-time desk and chair?

We have to think about how much physical storage we need. (Hint: It's less than you think. There's this thing called “the cloud.”) We have to consider everyone's need for personal space. (Hint: Ditto.) And we have to think about who sits next to whom — and whether that changes from time to time.

We have to balance everyone's natural desire for his or her own working space with the square footage we need to create cool collaborative spaces. When the two collide, which should win out?

These are questions that will define how our agency feels — but I'll admit, right now, it feels like a lot of math. The good news is we can fit 300 people onto two of our new floors — and we can still go on to make a very cool space.

Nick Moore is chief creative officer and EVP at Wunderman New York.

This is the third installment in a four-part series.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 4

It was less than two years ago that the late Steve Jobs introduced the iPad. At the time, he heralded the beginning of the “post-PC” era. The PC era had been ushered in thirty-five years prior by a young Bill Gates and Paul Allen, who envisioned in 1975, “a computer on every desktop and in every home.”

That vision has been fulfilled, and the PC, which evolved with the Internet to become our first truly connected device, has impacted virtually every industry imaginable. Among the many changes, it has dramatically changed consumer shopping behaviors forever.

According to comScore, e-commerce spending in the United States has seen double-digit year-over-year growth during the past five consecutive quarters, reaching $49.6B in Q4 2011. Those computers on our desks and in our homes are clearly being used for shopping.

Impressive as the PC-fueled online commerce growth has been, we are in the midst of a dramatic shift away from the PC as our primary Internet access point. As our online attention veers away from the tethered desktop and goes increasingly mobile, so too will our online shopping transactions.

In its latest data on smartphone penetration in the U.S., Nielsen reported that 48% of American adults had smartphones. On a global basis, 2011 marked the first year that smartphone shipments outpaced that of PCs. New research from Canalys said there were 487.7 million smartphones shipped in 2011 versus 414.6 million PCs shipped. It's interesting to note that Canalys includes tablets in their PC numbers, so if you consider both smartphones and tablets as “post-PC” products, as Mr. Jobs did, the shift toward smartphones and tablets is even more dramatic.

The impact of a post-PC world on shopping is already apparent. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) recently issued a report called “Mobile Commerce: Reinventing the Way Consumers Shop.” The study found that 37% of mobile owners engaged in commerce from their respective device, which could include making a purchase, redeeming a coupon or searching for coupons. The CEA report claims that approximately 35% of all online transactions are now completed from a mobile device, including smartphones, tablets and cell phones.

The post PC era has just begun and already more than one-third of online commerce is not coming from PCs. With the glowing success of Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet; an abundance of new Android tablets from multiple manufacturers; rumors of Windows 8 tablets; and of course, the highly anticipated announcement of the iPad 3, the inertia is building.

As smartphones and tablets, our constantly-connected and constant companions, become an increasingly convenient and effective way to shop, whether for a carefully researched purchase or an impulse buy that is just a tap away.

It's clear that the majority of our online purchases will be made from our post-PC devices — our smartphones and tablets — in the very near future.

Myk Willis is founder of Myxer Social Radio, a website and app that allows people to listen to music together.

See what our readers had to say on this topic in the April 2012 issue.