Media Week

Twitter - the micro blogging site- which is becoming increasingly fashionable has held talks with Facebook about a possible takeover.

The FT reports that negotiations have valued Twitter at $500M! That's not bad for the company that created 'tweets' and which has been lampooned by bloggers for having technology which is not too reliable. And also Twitter has not made any money! I can't imagine what the Dragons Den team would make of this proposition!

A bidding war could be about to break out for the micro blogging service which inspires a passionate following. Despite the efforts of Gordon Brown, Obama, and Nasa to engage with Twitter followers, there are still plenty of marketing executives out there who do not know that Twitter exists or how Twitter can have an impact on their brand. Maybe Facebook's acquisition - if it goes ahead - could change that. We'll see.

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Google is trying out a new approach to advertising on YouTube that is closely modelled on its successful AdWords system. Under the new arrangement, advertisers will be able to bid to have their videos displayed in a new sponsored video section of the site when visitors to YouTube search for particular keywords.

But will it work? It is a fascinating idea. There are already a number of YouTube channels which have been set up by companies wishing to leverage the viral power of YouTube and talk directly to stakeholders. I think that companies should become more involved with YouTube. Sponsored videos could work to an extent. But unsponsored videos will probably have more credibility with consumers. There is clearly an audience for company YouTube videos. I have seen some B2B ones which have attracted more than 50,000 views. At the end of the day, it comes down to quality of content. If it's sponsored but the video is dull, it will not go anywhere. Being a natural part of of a social media network as far as possible is probably best for a corporate rather than paying to take further steps to grabbing attention. Although an initial sponsored video burst could be good to generate interest and help launch a new initiative. Once this gets going - if it does, it will be highly competitive.  I'd be interested to know what other people think? Could sponsored videos work? Or will people be fed up with corporates trying to gain their attention in an area where they like to feel free to search for what they want on their own terms?

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Josh Bernoff, one of the co-authors of Groundswell, the best-selling Forrester book about social media technologies, talks about how social media fits into the mix during an economic downturn.

He argues that social media communities/blogs are relatively inexpensive compared to many other marketing activities and can help companies generate positive word of mouth. If you haven't read the book, I'd strongly recommend it.

http://loispaul.typepad.com/blog/2008/10/an-chat-with-groundswell-author-josh-bernoff.html

www.itsopen.co.uk