Leverage Negative domain names and rumors on social media/blogs

I have just read a blog post on eyeforpharma.com regarding buying domain names which are negative to brands.

I am sorry, but have to strongly disagree, pro-actively buying negative domain names (DNs) is a very bad idea and it doesn't work! Here is why:

- you encourage DNs hackers to buy negative DNs related to your trademarks > since you care, they find you a more interesting target

- negative DNs are unlimited, one day it is Ihateyourxyzbrand.com and the next day, it is xyzbrandsucks.com > DNs hackers will always be one step ahead of your protective buying actions

- this had been the strategy of companies 10 years ago when negative DNs appeared, they failed and they stopped doing this!

This is what you should do:
- try first to manage well your real trademarks and the content of your brand web sites, which add real value for customers

- of course, "listen" to what happens on the Internet, DNs, furthermore in blogs and social networks (rumors and negative posts or groups can also appear here) and take the following actions:

a) understand the reason why this happened and first think about this as an opportunity, instead of a threat, to change the way you produce, manage and/or sell your products/services

b) take legal actions, if you strongly believe this a threat impacting your brand/stealing your trademark, but go back to a) as well to look for better products/services

c) if you don't have the opportunity to leverage your products/services nor that this is real brand/trademark impact - just ignore them!

Explore Virtual Worlds and Social Networks today to build your brand loyalty tomorrow!

Watch this video, quite interesting, Secondlife and Social Networks' approach by text100, a PR company represented in 29 countries. Of course it is a bit commercial, but they do share their experiences and thoughts about the future. text100 believe that the power of loyalty in Online Communities will dominates brand building and reputation. Companies need to experiment Virtual Worlds/Social Networks, become early adopter and start building loyalty now. If they don't, a competitor will and a competitor with the best loyalty in social networks within the next 5 years will win the brand building and brand loyalty battle.

Text 100: Branding building in Second Life - ~10 minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCHoXnUOqsU&mode=related&search=


Now, have a look at this real life project, Patient Opinion, funded jointly by the Department of Health and South Yorkshire Strategic Health Authority.
A revolutionary online system which allows anyone to share their experiences of receiving specialist treatment on the NHS Health Service.
http://www.patientopinion.org.uk

More about Brand loyalty on Word of Mouth Basic Training: How-To: Earn Brand Loyalty in Social Networks?
http://www.womma.org/wombat/blog/2006/10/howto_earn_bran.htm

More about Social Networks on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network

Healthcare within the cyberspace?

Social Networking already started with sharing videos on youtube, pictures on flickr and even some strong business models, such banking, are re-think like Prosper.com a "people to people" lending community. Now watch this a bit closer, things are happening within Healthcare as well:

Social Network for oxygen patients
"SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Feb. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The 1.6 million Americans who require therapeutic oxygen can all breathe easier. The popular website, OxygeNation.com, has joined forces with Leverage Software to launch an interactive online community for oxygen patients... "
Read more

and even beyond Social Network on the net, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Secondlife.com!
"We can't always expect people to come to our Web site or use our tools directly, Janice Nall, director of the CDC's Division of e-Health Marketing, said this week. The CDC is one of a handful of government agencies staking a place in Web-based virtual worlds such as Second Life"
CDC

eyeforpharma has produced a free report on Web 2.0 approaches in Pharma which you may be interested in. Unfortunately, I can't link it directly from my blog, you have to register first, but it is worth 2 minutes registration.

Turn-off your TV!

Retrieve the Full story of 25 startups to watch on Money.cnn.com, but have a closer look to Joost.com, the merger of TV and Internet is coming faster than you think, how does that will impact your marketing/adverstisement campaign?

Joost.com: The duo behind peer-to-peer services Kazaa and Skype will officially launch Joost this spring, aiming to merge the best of TV with the best of the Net. The service provides more of a television-style experience than current online video sites, with channels you can flip through randomly or program yourself. Viewers can also share playlists of their favorite shows with friends or chat with them online

http://www.joost.com/screenshots/

Virtual Worlds, doesn't that mean anything for business?

Right, Secondlife, Habbo are very popular or trendy virtual worlds, so what?

Basically, you may thought that the companies that are running those worlds are making money or are trying to be as more successful as possible to be acquired later on by a bigger fish... but there is maybe something else behind that simple point of view. Isn't the society changing? The way teenagers and young adults are behaving today on the net, may completely changed the way you will have to communicate with them and do business with them? Furthermore, many things that people are used to request or trust from companies today, they may look for that from their communities and for (almost) free...

Look at Prosper.com, nobody will have thought few years that even the banking model could be re-invented. What will happens when all will be mixed in a virtual world without the current barrier (keyboard, screen, etc.), using RFID and other processors below your skin, how these will impact your business?

http://www.secondlife.com

http://www.habbo.com

RFID tattoo
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196802844

RFID VIP for Clubbers and already a quite old story, scary!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3697940.stm