Kathryn Lund

Crazy that I updated my iPhone in September but never took a glance at any of the new updates.
Your mentioning of the Focus feature is certainly something that I need in my life. As of this fall I have been immensely busy with my job that I started to develop “workaholic” habits. During my personal time, I would constantly check my slack and email messages on weekdays and weekends. There’s never a line of separation for me, especially since I work from home. I took it upon myself as of 2 weeks ago to remove my “mail” app from my home screen and keep my phone on do not disturb as much as possible to refrain myself from getting into work mode while I’m enjoying LIFE. It was driving me crazy and it was absolutely unhealthy.
This Focus feature is definitely something I’m going to look into now and make it part of my routine. Thanks for sharing this Hannah!

I haven’t updated my phone yet, but I’m really intrigued to test out the Focus mode because I get distracted very easily too. I tend to keep my phone on do no disturb most of the day so I’m not tempted to go on my phone. It’s crazy to think that Apple still finds ways to enhance their technology to make it better for it’s users. After each update its like woah this is awesome there’s no way there’s anything else they can do to top it off, but they do!

Love that you pointed all these features out, Hannah. I have my phone on “Do Not Disturb,” almost 100 percent of the time. I think this update is enlightening and I am going to use it. My main reason for keeping my phone on do not disturb is because of the million rob-calls I get daily. I don’t know how to make them stop. I wish Apple would roll out something for this.

I performed the update just recently due to the fact, I got the new Apple watch and I was required to. I think performance is definitely a little better, but constantly being thrown off by different UX elements and occasionally experience gaps from previous CX. Curious if other users are having difficulties too?

Wow! I just got the new iPhone 13 and had no idea of some of the features you mentioned on your post. I wish there was a way to educate customers in the updates without us having to google those answers. Could be a new innovation for the future?

Amen. We all need to remember as humans that our own personal experience does not necessarily translate to that of our shared demographic. There are so many other factors at play. Yes, as marketers we place people into buckets and generalize, which serves certain purposes but can really detract from others. As you say, jb, it’s so critical to listen to the data, dig into what you’re trying to convey, and then from there, determine the platforms to employ, not just based on feel.
P.S. I just realized that I used the word “amen” to reply to a post about being agnostic. I know it’s a different kind of agnostic, but it still made me chuckle a bit.

Wow Jen! We need access to this master excel doc!! (Unless that’s only for JB students?) But, yes totally agree. I feel like I only know like 2% of anything marketing due to the nature of technology and how quickly the industry changes!

Also, hoping we can have a dialogue. Your cohort has limited marketing experience, but opening to learning. I need a translation/ explanation of all data you presented.
-So historically Facebook was good channel cost-wise, but lately pricier due to changing in the platform
However, the platform is highly effective in-platform engagement because FB built for engagement metrics like: likes, celebrates, comments, shares, etc.

So essentially you’re telling GenZ and marketers to not write-off platforms based on our own biases, and let data do the talking?

This is some great insights! Being a young professional myself and interacting with others who have more or less tenure than me has shown me exactly what you are pointing out. I think the moment that we stop looking at the data and generalizing marketing strategies based on our perspectives is when we will fail to be successful marketers. Always paying attention to ALL our target audience is imperative to continue to succeed.

Jen, we could have had an entire Learnathon dedicated to this subject alone. To your point, as someone who’s served in-house for well over a decade, I quickly realized the value of agency specialists who spend their days living and breathing these details. With things so rapidly changing, it made sense to parter and “buy” these insights vs trying to keep up myself.

To other points on other posts: This kind of fractured, highly specialized media market made me wonder if there was greater value in managing fewer channels, really really well. (email newsletters! QR codes! What’s old is new again!

Jen, I absolutely loved reading your analysis here.
Facebook’s decision to dial back on the targeting options is interesting but also frustrating for the organizations/charities that have to key in on a certain margin of people. Part of me feels like this is hurting those orgs. For example, I always get ads surrounding M.S. because my mom has the disease and I am actively involved with the M.S. Society. It’s weird for me to get removed from that keyed in targeting, because their advertisements were informative – especially when the COVID pandemic started to come about.
I also believe this will disrupt those micro-moments you’ve mentioned. How can we ensure the right audience gets from point A to point B when we can’t target the exact consumer profile? I don’t know how this will create more opportunity honestly. But I am interested to see how this transformation plays out.

My brother is a JEEP person, so I shall be sending this to him — thank you!

From a brand perspective, I wonder who it helps… loyalists? Newbies? And wonder what they’re marketing and CX plan is to unveil and create a journey for folx!?

First off, I’m a big fan of Hidden Brain and downloaded that episode for a later listen.

I’m a Jeep owner and was excited when I heard about the “Easter eggs” that the manufacturers hide in window etchings, wheels, etc. (mine is in one of the front lights).. Apparently the brand has been doing this for decades, since before social media, so what a prescient added touch to create word of mouth buzz and build the loyal following for which Jeep is known.

Chipotle is another brand that’s effectively used gamification tactics. For example, to promote its new rewards program, Chipotle launched a video game contest experience where the player with the highest score won a Tesla (https://thewisemarketer.com/loyalty-strategy/chipotle-leverages-gamification-to-promote-rewards-exchange/). Chipotle also gave away $100K in bitcoin on National Burrito Day, and this on-trend, lottery approach got them a ton of earned media that an average sweepstakes or food holiday promo would not.

I definitely see the use of “gaming” or stimulation models with the medical students at my work – and at my last job the students worked on optometric stimulators where they were given patient cases they needed to solve all through a stimulator – I found the use of this in educational really important – it gives the lower classes a chance at patient care before they see real patients. As for Jeep, I think this definitely aligns with their brand which is built around adventure-seekers, drivers looking to go off the beaten path for the next big thrill. I feel like a gamification feature fulfills that need as well.

In my opinion, gamification (when done right) is an awesome Marketing tool! This makes me think of the Nike case that we read and how the SNKRS app used a combination of mobile marketing technology and gamification to boost sales. A completely different example would be in Taylor Swift’s promotion of her new version of the album Red. To announce her new “From the Vault” tracks, she put on a cryptic message and fans had to unscramble the names of the songs: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-red-fan-theories. People love to compete and do puzzles – especially in a community (online or off) where they can work together and chat about the experience. Because of this, gamification can be a really powerful tool when it comes to building hype around a product or service!

Thank you for sharing Sean. As someone who never really got into gaming, I have been seeing gamification pop up alot recently. I remember studying the strategy in undergrad and the way many brands were using it via their social media platforms. It helped create excitement about a new launch, created a community (for scavenger based games were customers can communicate clue to one another) and the it helped brands stand out or ‘stop the scroll” It is interesting to see how Jeep is using it in a different way other than social media. I also agree it is smart on Jeep’s part since they are able to control the user experience and emphasize scenerios that highlight the products best features.

Come on Sean, You know those cornfields have some type of military tech hidden underneath! LOL
Although I’m not much into games, I can totally see how this can trigger an increase in sales especially if they offer the option for users to customize the Jeep with legitimate upgrades that a dealership would offer.

I often think about the gamification of marketing tactics within the Healthcare B2B space, but with our company (ResMed) acquiring new customers is a challenge since we have (just about) every customer in the HME sector. However, we could use gamification to simply increase sales with the customers we do have. Or, The most likely use of gamification for us would be to increase awareness through the patient audience. It’s definitely a topic I see creeping more and more into the B2B sector.

This gaming stimulation is one of my preferred marketing methods because it is so unique. Check out this video I found:

Here is the website to a great gamification tool that can actually make games unique to the company’s need. Their games look awesome! If you want to read more about them here is their link.:
https://gamesforbrands.com/

With any service or product giving out personal info is always a risk. BetterHelp is all about functionality, convenience, and a pleasant user experience. All users can use both mobile or desktop versions of this platform, depending on their preferences. Some people want to stay anonymous and ensure all their data and conversations with counselors are strictly confidential. As it states, you don’t have to tell your real name on BetterHelp. Even if you decide to go with your actual contact and personal data, you can be entirely sure that everything is highly protected and confidential. Suppose you are visiting the website as a California or European Union resident. In that case, your rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act or GDPR are an addendum to this policy.
Categories of Information Collected:
– Visitor Data
– Onboarding Data
– Account Registration Data
– Transaction Data
– Login Data
– Counseling Session Data
– Customer Data
– Counselor Data
– Communications Data

It’s really interesting that you wrote on this because today I saw a lot of people on my timeline talking about the collaboration between Travis Scott and BetterHelp. One of the main concerns that people had was that BetterHelp was not a secure app and that they were actually selling customer data, which is very concerning. This is not the first time I heard something like this about BetterHelp and other digital therapy services. I do wonder about how serious these companies are about protecting customer information and whether they are using the data received from consumers for any other reasons. Though like Jordan said, it seems like you don’t have to share personal information if you don’t want to which is good.

Great post! I hear adds for BetterHelp all the time on Spotify podcasts, and have always been intrigued by the concept and curious about their company success. I find it very interesting that Dr. Kirby left the practice, and this definitely makes me wary of the application. I think a innovation like this could be highly beneficial for society, allowing mental health resources to be more accessible not only because it is on own personal device but also financially. There is a huge gap in mental healthcare in America and across the world and I think technology like this could make a huge difference, but there is clearly a lot of privacy concerns to be thoroughly thought out. I will be looking into this brand further, to gain a better understanding of their business plan! Thanks again for sharing!

HIPAA, GDPR and CPRA/CCPA all present some pretty stringent standards regarding how any company can use individual health data.

Is that enough though? Who watches the Watchmen?

I’m admittedly not as well versed on this specific venture as you all are, but I appreciate your perspective. The risk with any data collection is that the “enforcement” really only happens in the breach. It may effectively punish the venture, but it’s cold comfort for those who put their trust in the brand.

Why is it that there’s so much ambiguity here? I would expect the T&Cs in this space require even more clarity than most, and yet I assume they are even more opaque and lawyerly?

Wow I had no idea that this was even a new feature they were considering. I logged into my app and couldn’t find the games so maybe it hasn’t made its way to iOS. Personally I don’t think this is a good move for Netflix, though I understand why they introduced this new feature. I just don’t see many people including myself to log into the Netflix app to play a game when I could be rewatching Criminal Minds for the 5th time. I feel like these games will distract from the real purpose of the Netflix app. Though I’m curious to see if there will be a decrease in time of people watching content on the app once the games roll out!

Interesting direction for Netflix. I’d imagine that this is an attempt by Netflix to attract a segment of the market that isn’t consuming their other content, as in gamers perhaps…? And to get as much data about them as they can?

I just posted about Twitch on our other class blog, and admittedly, I don’t know much about that at all, but I uncovered this tidbit in “A Marketers Guide to Twitch:” In 2020, the Twitch community watched over 1 trillion minutes of content in 2020. And every day, Twitch affiliates and their partners create more content than is available in Netflix’s entire catalog. I would imagine that Netflix is paying a lot of attention to those stats.

Seems that some in the business world are not convinced, here’s an interesting piece from Harvard Business Review about that: https://hbr.org/2021/11/gaming-isnt-netflixs-best-opportunity-for-growth

This is interesting… I wish Netflix was less secretive with its data, and we could better understand their reasons for this. Per Kathryn’s comment, perhaps it’s trying to reach gamers, or maybe it’s a tactic to further engage non-gaming viewers in their content. I think there are a lot of directions this concept could go… like what if you’re watching a cooking show and could order a meal kit from a famous chef based on your interactions? Or design a house in one of those fixer upper shows?
The first interactive movie to get on my radar was Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, which I didn’t love but mostly because I didn’t find the characters or plot compelling. I think with the right storyline and call to action, interactive shows/movies could be headed in a cool direction.

I understand their tactic (like mentioned above) to engage with different or inactive users in a new way, but I also agree that they should stick with what they know. Aren’t they big enough to just stick to movies/tv?

I found it interesting that Apple tried to hold up the iOS release because their App Store policies state that third-party apps cannot act as storefronts for other apps. In release emails backs in May it seems that Apple wanted Netflix to continue selling subscriptions within its app so they could earn a cut of the money – apparently Google had given Netflix a break on their standard commission. (https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/9/22772480/netflix-games-apple-iphone-ipad-ios-subscription-app-store)

Great Post Hannah! This is super interesting, especially because I feel like there was not a lot of buzz or marketing around it. As soon as I read this, I went straight to the app and could not find it. While I was on the app, I did some thinking. Where would they even put the “games” tab. It kind of feels like an elephant in the room, where it just doesn’t belong. When consumers think of Netflix it’s all about shows, movies and a personalized experience. They want quality entertainment. I understand with the whole metaverse, AR, VR, technology maybe this was an attempt to make users play games to feel like they’re a part of the shows. According to the article though, Netflix did this as an “attempt to keep subscribers and gain new ones”. This surprised me because there target market is “18-39 year olds who have an average household income of $102,000 per year.” That market is probably working individuals, not people who sit around and play games.

This kind of reminds me of when Netflix came out with their “Choose Your Own Adventure” film called Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. I wonder if they are concerned because of the plateau of subscribers and the rise of third party hosting sites. I like the idea of the games, but I am not sure that I would subscribe to Netflix just to play them

Wow! I had no idea this happened, but what a great feature addition on Netflix’s part. Considering the vast profitability that lying in gamification and the gaming industry I think this will be a success. Baking the new gaming features into the subscription model is an interesting decision on Netlfixs part, great for the viewer but I wonder if this decision will be more profitable for Netflix. I am continuously reminded of Netflix’s business plan after reading their case study months ago. I wonder if the gaming addition will change to add on pricing eventually to make up for lost profits elsewhere, this might be a good opportunity for Netflix to break ahead.

Meh! Feels true to Netflix to be experimental and transcend certain verticals. Will I partake in it? No. I’m not a gamer necessarily, but am excited for folx who are.

Do we also know that TV is a HUGELY social space, which makes games on TV/Movies fun… yep! Makes a lot of sense.

I think it’s just fun and even sticky; not sure it adds any additional value than that.

I may have the unpopular opinion here but I liked Netflix’s previous attempts at interactive film and the concept of “choosing your own adventure”. I think that when the games are live and the catalogue grows, interactive content will become increasingly intertwined with video-on-demand offering and Netflix is once again in the lead.

Thank you for sharing Hannah. I seem to be on the same boat as the rest of the people since I had no idea this was a thing. This either means Netflix is rolling this out super slowly so had not launched a full campaign for it or they need to fire their marketing team for lacking awareness campaigns. Either way, I do not see how this will fit into their overall strategy. Netflix has been doing well with several successful original content that I do not see people turning to it when they think to play games. From the article it seems they are selfishly using it as a way to gain market research to influence future decsions.