1. Spreadable Media

2. “our creative process has us watering down ideas in pursuit of the broadest possible net, when every day the human being is seeking the opposite” Tim Stock, scenarioDNA

3. Some History

4. We are super social apes We form tribes around shared interests We change our behaviour by copying others We rely on other opinions to guide our own

5. Community dislocation Mass urbanisation caused a breakdown in social bonds

6. The rise of free time Advanced industrialisation created mass free time... ...for the first time

7. Mass media Which was filled by mass media, rather than people... ...as people were limited by location, but media weren’t

8. Now we aren’t limited by location Our free time can focus on what we are really interested in Other people

9. Timeline 1800 1600 1700 1900 2000 Pre-Industrial age Industrialisation Post War Internet Age P2P media Mass Media Mass P2P Media

10. Media Economics Infinite $High Cost of media Amount of media Scarce $0 1968 2011

11. Attention Economics Media planning is based on media scarcity Value is monetary But infinite media has no monetary value .... The resource it consumes is attention

12. How to plan for attention economies

13. We aren’t looking in the right place Totally Generic Information Demographics are about similarity People are about individuality

14. Yes, we are all individuals Averages by nature are not differentiating Our individuality makes us human

15. Richness Nobody ever comes out of a movie saying “that was a really good movie. I really enjoyed it. It was really clear” Russell Davies To succeed, ideas move from ‘Big, Simple, Single’ To ‘Niche, Many Rich’

16. The intersection of rational and herd behaviour Who we are Who we aspire to be Cultural copying Statements of individuality Being human

17. People distribute niche ideas We understand the subtle nuances of our communities And we change the message accordingly

18. Because it is really easy.....

19. Recontextualising used to be high culture T.S.Eliot Quoting and referencing as a literary technique Recontextualising existing frame of reference

20. Now anyone can do this

21. Remixing took immense skill in the analogue world Grandmaster Flash Creating new culture by combining and recontextualising

22. Now the tools are on every computer

23. How can brands inspire this behaviour?

24. Brands can’t create communities What lights the fire? An influential match? Or the right conditions for fires

25. Influence isn’t done by the influencer Who influenced who? And who chose to copy who?

26. We learn by copying others..... But we’ve been trained not to admit it (to teachers or to qualitative researchers)

27. How things spread

28. How things spread “As content spreads it gets remade, either literally through sampling and remixing, or figuratively via its insertion into conversations and interactions” Professor Henry Jenkins, Spreadable Media (2009)

29. Literally

30. Literally

31. Figuratively Simples!

32. Content is a means not an end People spend time in social networks because of people Content is just something to talk about

33. How things spread “If we want to predict what will spread, we have to develop a fuller understanding of the ways that the circulation of information may strengthen or damage social relations” Confer Status Strengthen bonds Define the community Professor Henry Jenkins, Spreadable Media (2009)

34. Humour A joke is a medium not a message. The message is ‘I’m a funny guy’ The physical act of sharing humour strengthens bonds The joke is the means by which you transmit this information Confirming that subject is a shared source of humour defines who is in and out of the community

35. Designing for communities NB – slide blatantly lifted from Mike Arauz’sDesign for Networks

36. What happened next NB – slide blatantly lifted from Mike Arauz’sDesign for Networks

37. Why? Designed to appeal to a number of niches Conferring status and belonging on each NB – slide blatantly lifted from Mike Arauz’sDesign for Networks

38. So spreadable media is inherently creative Media Neutral Media positive

39. Personalisation to share

40. Personalisation unique to you

41. A big incentive

42. Richness

43. Famous for fifteen people Aggregating niche communities Giving community leaders a larger platform Confers status, strengthens bonds

44. Product + Big Incentive

45. Advertising is the last thing you should do Advertising is not what you do.... ...it’s how you tell people what you’ve done

46. All the above