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Annotated Bibliography Assignment

By Griffin Davis, Team 1,

1. "Netlytic." Netlytic. Netlytic.org. Web. 15 November 2014

Netylytic is an online application that collects information from social networking sites and online conversations then summarizes and organizes them in a visual data map. For example, Netylytic can collect all of the tweets by a specific user, directed at a specific username, or containing a specific keyword over a certain amount of time. It then categorizes these tweets based on content, sentiment, and a number of other organizational variables. Once it has sifted through the material, the application displays the organized tweets in a colorful data map. This could prove useful as a convenient way to collect information about a certain subject. It can also serve as an analytical tool, giving one the ability to analyze companies’, peoples’, events’, or an items’ standing on social networking, as it allows for general themes to visually stand out. Because of the applications power to quickly obtain and organize a large amount of information, one could use it to both get a quick read on any person, topic, or thing being discussed on the internet, or analyze the same subject on an in depth level.

2. "StoryMap JS." StoryMap JS - Maps that tell stories. Northwestern University Knight Lab. Web. 15 November 2014.

Story mapping is an online tool that allows one to combine visual and text elements in order to create a multimedia form of a story that can help the consumer interact with and interpret the story in a more interactive and complete manner. It can be used in a variety of ways; in fiction it can help the consumer create a more solidified spatial awareness of the story. For example, one could create a story map of William Faulkner’s Yoknapatawpha County (the fictional county where most of his stories take place) so that a reader would have a clearer visualization of his stories and a greater understanding of where and why the events of his stories took place. They would simply need to import a drawing of the map into the application, then mark locations and write explanatory text using an app called Zoomify(www.zoomify.com). One could also apply it for more practical or "real world" uses, as the application can be plugged into Google maps. This makes it capable of dong something such as mapping a travel itinerary by marking each destination then providing explanatory text at each marked location. 

3. Tuttle, Brad. "Two New Ways McDonald’s Is Trying to Win Over Millennials." Time 11 Sept. 2014. Print.

Brad Tuttle identifies that McDonalds’s recent drop in sales signified to them that a change needed to be made in both their marketing and products in order to cater to the new millennial generation. Because McDonalds’s sales were dropping, they looked to currently successful massive restaurant chains to see what it was that made them different. They found that successful chains like Panera bread and Chipotle are more different “because orders are always easily customizable, and the food is deemed to be healthier, fresher, and higher quality” (Tuttle). The fact that restaurants with these options are more successful than McDonalds, even though they are more expensive than McDonalds, shows that the millennial generation is unique in its attention to being unique; essentially, young people are willing to pay more to have things prepared cleanly and in the specific fashion that fits their own unique nature. Tuttle goes on to explain how McDonalds is testing a new style of restaurant in order to fit the millennial generations’ unique sensibilities: “customers place orders using a tablet (technology!), and they personalize exactly what they want, including a choice of buns (artisan or brioche) and toppings (spicy mayo, classic ketchup, cheeses, guacamole, jalapenos, bacon, etc.). The customer then retreats to a table, and when the made-to-order meal is ready, a McDonald’s worker delivers it on a shiny metal basket rather than a scuzzy old plastic tray” (Tuttle). This article’s central purpose is in explaining the millennial generation’s new sensitivity towards uniqueness and customization and how a major company like McDonalds must adapt to this sensibility.

4.Ahuja, Vandana, and Yajulu Medury. "Corporate Blogs as E-CRM Tools – Building Consumer Engagement through Content Management." Journal of Database Marketing & Customer Strategy Managemen 2010.17 (2010): 91-105. Print.  

This journal article explains why company blogs are important commodities. The author explores how companies are able to build more personal relationships with their consumers by communicating their brand through the content of their blog. Then, they encourage consumer participation and involvement through feedback in the comments section. This way, the consumer not only has a more personal understanding of the brand and product, but is also able to engage with the company and feel that their voice is represented in the brand or product.

The author also explains that the company blog is a solution to what he calls “exploratory consumer browsing”. In broadest terms, he is discussing how companies must adapt their advertising to the age of the internet. Since the user is in control and “exploring” on the internet, rather than just solely consuming as one would through a medium such as television, the company must “aid a consumer’s quest for information”(Vanjana) rather than simply throw information at them. This approach is obviously much more individualized, which is why companies’ blogs take on such a personal nature and offer more ways for the consumer to create a relationship with the company. 

5. Taylor, Marcus. "6 Key Digital Marketing and Music Industry Trends For 2014." Hypebot. 3 Jan. 2014. Web. 17 Nov. 2014. <http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2014/01/6-key-digital-marketing-and-music-industry-trends-for-2014.html>.

This article gives predictions and suggestions for how music has been and will be marketed in the modern age, specifically 2014. When addressing the content itself, Marcus Taylor suggests that content marketing does not really matter because there is so much musical content and so much marketing already in place for that content that the market has become saturated.  The marketing itself does not matter as much anymore because of the plethora of it it, so content that speaks for itself will actually promote more success than content whose advertisement will be lost in an ocean of other advertisements.

Another thing he stresses is an adaptation to the mobile experience. According to Taylor, “Across all of the music website we have access to, approximately 20% of website visits come from a mobile device” (Taylor). He explains that because of this massive medium shift, companies will have no choice but to adapt and reach consumers on their mobile devices.

Taylor’s discussion of visual media’s importance makes a comment about modern music consumers. He talks about the increased popularity of “quick content” like vine and Instagram, which allows one to infer that modern consumers have shorter attention spans, so companies are more likely to grab their attention by providing image based content through social media posts.