The tool-as-strategy trap is an easy one to fall prey to. It usually involves a shiny new form of media (Newspapers! Radio! Television! Internet! Telekinesis!) and a proclamation that all previous forms of media are forthwith null and void posthaste, etc. etc. Gurus arise (often of the self-anointed variety), agencies and clients are fleeced and large segments of the populace don’t notice a thing has changed.

The current tool du jour is social media. Social media includes such things as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and a bunch of other sites that promise to be different than Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn but really aren’t. Social media does not include such familiar anti-social media as television, radio, magazines and billboards. Because you enjoy those mediums alone, with nothing but the cold, echoing groans of your empty soul to comfort you.

Also, MySpace no longer counts as social media. It has carved a newer, niche-ier segment known as Perv-n-Indie-Band media. Also, kitties.

Companies as vast as General Electric and as tiny as the neighborhood dry cleaners are into social media, bombarding us with pleas to “like” their Facebook pages, follow them on Twitter and, as a favorite SM saying goes, “join the conversation.” Which is all well and good, assuming companies understand the difference between being on Facebook and Twitter and actually using the mediums to advance their businesses.

Because, as I may have alluded to a scant few sentences ago, social media is a tool, not a strategy. It’s like any other tool in advertising: Wield it well or be prepared to poke out an eye. Just as there is a wide gulf between great TV spots and anything starring Vince “Slap Chop” Schlomi, there’s a big difference between successful social media campaigns like Pepsi’s Refresh Project and Best Buy’s Twitter-based Twelpforce, and tossing your pizza chain’s locations up on Facebook and throwing some coupons to your 193 Twitter followers.

There are several attractive aspects to social media. First, it’s cheap to get into. Unless you’ve managed to hold onto to that TI 99/4a for the past 30 years, chances are your computer will load up Facebook and Twitter just fine. So, your initial investment comes down to time, which is often comes in the ultra-affordable form of intern-time. But that’s where too many companies and agency begin and end their foray into social media – with a young youth who either thinks he’s knows everything about social media yet knows nothing about the brand, or admits he knows nothing about either. Note the all-around lack of brand knowledge going on. So much for faking it till you make it.

Like all media, it is possible to create an effective campaign using social media alone. But, unshockingly, the best social media efforts tie into broader schemes. The best current example of this is Old Spice’s “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” campaign. This campaign originally launched with one thirty-second spot, a couple of fifteens and a microsite. And those spots exploded into all manner of glorious joy bits over YouTube, racking up at least 14 million views from my coworker Silver alone. Oh, and the thirty-second spot won the Grand Prix and Cannes. A nice piece of hardware, even if it stinks of mime.

Now, Old Spice and their agency, Wieden+Kennedy, could’ve kicked back, tossed out a couple more derivative spots and called it a campaign. And, in fact, they did do some more TV spots, although no one would accuse them of phoning those in. But then they did something that can really only be described as cool: They put their now über-popular character to the task of answering their fans with personalized videos. Pulling comments from multiple SM sources in real-time (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.), the creative team scripted responses that TMYMCSL (actor Isaiah Mustafa) delivered in his typical, manly style. Videos were posted to YouTube and their arrival disseminated via Twitter and Facebook. They did this for two days straight, answering comments from anonymous tweeters to celebrities to Mustafa’s own daughter. In the end, they had produced over 100 clips, lit up the online world and gained even more fans for the brand. It’ll probably win some more trophies next year. And, crazy of crazies, it was all part of a strategy.

Sure beats the heck out of “Who wants a coupon?” tweets, doesn’t it?

Later,

Fox

While the banner was great for driving clicks (and in some cases he will still be good for this), the artist formerly know as the banner looks way different. He’s more about finding messaging opportunities and developing content, rather than advertising. His purpose is to inform and to entertain, to create an emotional bond.

You might not recognize this guy, but he does stand out as being rich – living among marketing and content. Whenever you hear him speak, he’ll want to exchange something that’s of value. A real 2-way communicator. Lastly, he’s a big believer in doing more — whether inside the ad unit or the context of the entire screen.

I think you’ll be glad you met him particularly as we see the value of the impression going down and the value of attention going up. With that said, impressions aren’t going anywhere — they’ve been around for years. To quote Doug Weaver, who’s also been around the digital space for years, “There’s a reason we call it an impression, not a transfer.”

Let’s all be prepared to hit play on the artist formerly known as the banner and get ready to be engaged!

Last Thursday, something bigger than words can describe started here at Firehouse. It’s an initiative born out of Mark’s belief that big ideas can make a difference, and that the power of prayer is, well, powerful – and can be life changing.

Anna Basso is a 16-year-old girl who lives in Dallas and whose family also lives next door to Mark – they have been neighbors for 10 years. She’s been battling Stage 4 Ewing’s Sarcoma (a rare type of bone cancer) since November 2009 and has a tough fight ahead.

Anna has become an inspiration to us all, and while she is getting terrific medical care, it’s going to take more than that to help her win this fight.

To encourage Anna in her battle against cancer, the agency set a lofty goal of getting one million prayers for her. It all comes together at http://www.1millionprayers.com, where friends, family and even strangers are pledging to pray for Anna and sending their collective goodwill her way.

Please join us in supporting this amazing young woman, day in and day out. A special time has been set aside every day to pray – 12:12 p.m. This time is a direct reference to Romans 12:12 – Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Anna can really feel the strength of each individual behind her.

Pledge to pray for Anna on the website (1millionprayers.com), and help us spread the word via Facebook and Twitter (#1million4anna).

This news clip does a great job of telling the story of the 1 Million 4 Anna project, with footage from a party we hosted for Anna on April 22.

Crowd sourced photography, 3d mapping, social media integration and the whole kitchen sink is coming to Bing Maps sooner than you might think. Also, the live backpack video camera = your mind blown.

The possibilities for advertisers are both ominous in an Orwellian-esque way and exciting in a uber-geek-esque way. As both a sci-fi buff and gadget nerd, I am both terrified and titillated.

OK, now tell me that you’re 100% sure Bill Gates hasn’t secretly become a comic book super villain.

It’s a meme-making juggernaut.

It’s a hub of online activism.

It’s a collective being (Anonymous) dedicated to chaos, disorder and destruction that is just as capable of benevolence as it is malfeasance.

I’ve included so many links as to give you some idea as to what 4chan is all about so you don’t have to actually go there to see for yourself.

Whatever you do, do NOT do that. Ever.

It is at it’s core simply an image board. However, the images found there tend to be the type of things that make you wish your mind came with an “unsee” button.

For better or worse, in just a few short years 4chan has become one of the most powerful communities on the Interwebs. It can’t be ignored and it’s probably not even a good idea to turn your back on it.

Perhaps it’s better to just let it’s creator, Christopher Poole (AKA m00t) take it from here.

In the dark ages (ten years ago), the only way to spread your idea on a large scale was to do it yourself. This required large buckets of money and lots and lots of ads.

Today, clients get all sweaty thinking about how this magically happens, virally, for free. If it were only that easy.

What’s interesting is that different products and ideas are spread by different groups of people. There isn’t just one professional association of idea spreaders, with everyone else being passive.

For instance, if your authentic little Italian restaurant gets hot, it’s going to be because the chowhounds, the folks who love to talk about the next great place, are buzzing about it. On the other hand, if your blog gets a lot of traffic, it might just be because a few key bloggers are going on about it, spreading the idea.

As gatekeepers to our clients’ businesses, we have to stop and ask ourselves, “What am I doing about it? Have I figured out which portion of my user base are the talkers? Is it possible to focus my efforts on actually making something that they like? Or, am I confusing the people who talk about the competition, with the people I need to reach?” After all, these folks might not be from the same tribe…

Unfortunately, ideas oftentimes fail to spread. However, this may not be a result of their content, but rather, because they don’t have a committed group of people spreading the word about them. If you treat everyone the same, you’re not increasing the odds that some people will step up on your behalf.

The first question to ask someone who is frustrated at the rate their idea is spreading: “Who are you hoping will talk about you?” If you don’t know, it’s unlikely to happen all by itself. On the other hand, being smart about finding, courting and delighting the group most likely to spread the idea, is time well spent.

But can it cure cancer?

Probably not, but it can help raise cancer awareness and some much needed $$ for the cause.

We are about ½ way through the month of “Movember” and our Mo Bros here at Firehouse are doing their best to raise awareness about men’s health — particularly prostate and testicular cancer — via some truly epic ‘staches in the making. The “mos” are coming out, some faster than others, changing the faces of the men we work with daily.

Enjoy these baby-face pics taken on November 1 — all were clean-shaven and ready to grow and flow their mos. We’ll keep you posted as November 30 comes to a wrap, so that you too can witness the creative stylings of our Firehouse Mo Bros.

To support the Firehouse team, visit our agency page here: www.movember.com.

Respect the mo, support the cause.

The “Pick Me” work done around the Fantasy Football craze was a neat example of how creativity can extend your media buy. I never saw the work myself, although I imagine I’m in (or certainly near) the target. In fact, I would never have known about it unless my 10 year old son made sure to grab me one day when I got home to show me a cool thing he saw on the computer.

Fun idea. Easy to see why it spreads, but I got to tell you, I’m not sure what Reebok is wanting me to do? Now, I hear the words “Pick Me” and I may like the players a little more as I see them without all the gear so I can identify them beyond just a numbered jersey…but it feels like a missed opportunity.

Next up of the ideas is the Fun Theory from VW from overseas. Check out this clip:

Wow. Love it. Love it. Love it. A hand for the team that thought it up. A hand for the client that signed off on an idea that does not readily identify with driving. A standing ovation for the production team that pulled it off so well.

But there is more — check out the rest here: www.funtheory.com. Man, I was pumped when I saw it. Well done.

Finally, I saw some really fun work for a tired and formulaic category. Think CPG work for cereal has to be typical slice of life work with expected product shots? You might be suffering from IDS. Fiber One has a campaign around the idea of IDS or (Irrational Disbelief Syndrome). Does a nice job of getting your attention, making you smile and getting you to think differently or rethink the expected reaction to breakfast cereals and snack bars.

I mean these guys are hammering the copy points of Fiber One at you and it still manages to be funny and entertaining. No misunderstanding what they want you to take away, yet it is done well enough that it doesn’t get old. Then you hit the site they have created and the integration is terrific. Good stuff all the way around.

While I loved elements of all three and the VW staircase execution I believe is the most memorable, the cork this month goes to: The Fiber One team and the good folks at the Coping with Disbelief Institute. Great idea and a compelling reason to try the product.

Cheers!

Can someone please pass the skim milk?

You see, we’re in the idea business. And we love what we do.

You may also notice (if you’ve seen our client list) that we have a great deal of restaurant experience. In fact, not just experience, but a real passion for the dining industry and tackling the unique challenges restaurant brands face.

So as the economy started going south and the media kept banging the gong of doom, people started hunkering down, staying home and spending less. But for some reason, things didn’t get a whole lot better.

Our planning and insights team started taking a hard look at behaviors, trends, statistics and a whole lot of other factors in order to see if something could be done to help not just our clients, but everyone else as well.

And as we dug, and learned and uncovered…an idea began to form.

Waiting around for bailouts and handouts isn’t the answer. The answer is us. All of us.

Our intent is to create a movement. One based on the simple premise of reminding people that they can contribute to the economic recovery by doing very normal things.

Like eating out at a restaurant.

Take a look at this video. Let us know what you think.

And eat out for a change, will ya?