Web X.0 – What to Do When Your Product Doesn’t Fit the Hype by Kevin Dwinnell

With the term “Web 2.0” declared dead, and “Web 3.0” yet to be defined, where does that leave the marketers still trying to become “part of the conversation”? The same place it has always left us – making sure our value proposition connects with our target audience, and making sure our message reaches that audience.

Hype is a wave. If you’re there and you catch it, awesome. Not every one is in position to do that. But the Internet continues to be a birthplace of cool and spawns a river of things that generate hype. Eventually, our time will come.

In pitching our branded browsers (Booms) as a great affinity product for CPG, we hear “that wouldn’t work for toilet paper.” Correct, but it would work for diapers. Both products serve the same purpose, but one has a more robust avenue for connecting with the consumer than the other. Pampers and Huggies both produce a lot of web content tailored specifically toward Moms and create affinity to the brand – that’s an ideal place for one our Booms. Have you looked at your product and that cool new web site and determined if there’s a fit? Are you sure?

Not seeing a fit for marketing or integration into that hyped application doesn’t relieve you of your responsibility to understand it. I’ve been fortunate to work in the Internet space for a long time. That, however, has built some complacency and I’ve missed my share of opportunities because I didn’t “get it.”

In the interest of full disclosure, I’m still trying to “get” Twitter and continue to work at my understanding. I see the positive affect it can have for a company on several levels. I’ve extracted value, hopefully shared some, and when I meet a social media expert, I try to learn more. I believe it’s paying off for our start up as it does for many other companies. But I would have missed this if I’d left it alone without trying to first understand it.

Your product may not be right for every hyped Internet site, but with more of your customers online, some of these sites will work for you. To stay competitive, whether a start up or not, it’s in your interest to know which ones.

Posted in Commentary | Tags: Branded Browser, business, custom browser, Customer value proposition, marketing, Social network, Target audience, Twitter, web 2.0, Website | No Comments »

Brand Thunder Brings the Boom to Custom Branded Browsers by Patrick Murphy

Columbus, Ohio (PRWEB) February 19, 2009 — Brand Thunder LLC (http://www.brandthunder.com), the branded browser specialists, announced today its feature release of the Brand Thunder Boom, which allows dynamic switching of the Internet browser look, feel and functionality.

Booms provide lightweight themes that can change background images, colors, navigation buttons and tabs. They can also add toolbars with custom navigation and widgets as well as sidebars for videos, pictures, music, news and more. The user can switch from one Boom to another without restarting their browser.

“The more we learned about use of the custom browsers, the more we realized seamless transition from one to the other was important,” explained Michael Kaply, Software Engineer for Brand Thunder and developer behind the Boom technology. “In true creative fashion, the solution came to us when we were looking at a completely different issue.”

“We really make an attempt to listen aggressively and respond quickly to the needs of our users,” said Patrick Murphy, founder and CEO of Brand Thunder. “And to our mutual benefit, they often identify improvements that were not yet on our list.”

About Brand Thunder

Formed in April 2007, Brand Thunder creates a more persistent presence between corporate brands and their Internet consumer through its branded-browser customization, which leads to increased website visits and revenue. Through a software installation, end users change the look and feel of their Internet browser into an immersive experience from their favorite sports team, entertainment franchise or internet site. The customized browsers feature official logos, colors, content and functionality, but can also extend capabilities including video, music players or other Internet widgets. Current business partners and clients include the Huffington Post, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, NCAA, NHL, Starpulse.com, Universal Music and Yahoo!. Samples found at http://brandthunder.com/gallery/.

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Posted in Press Releases | No Comments »

Oscar Weekend and Leveraging Events for your Company by Kevin Dwinnell

Do you know the event calendar that impacts your business? If not, it’s worth a good look because it can have a material impact on your business, and there are tools that can help.

Sadly, Brand Thunder is not going to the Oscars. Is an entertainment-award Boom (branded browser) in our future? Almost certainly, but we’re not there this year because we have to choose wisely where to spend our limited resources. So, when we mapped out the year of development and our goals, we expected major brands to sign (Thank you NASCAR Nationwide Series, Major League Soccer, Dartmouth College and a host of others). We also expected pockets of development time to build our “non-branded” Booms.

For the non-branded versions, we focused on the holidays knowing they would give us an ongoing deadline and multiple opportunities to refresh a build, maintain an audience and attract a new one. (Self Promotion Warning: Check out our Gallery to see the St. Patrick’s Day Boom. Not only will it get your Irish up, but you can choose one of two styles – Shamrock or Pub.)

If you want to find the relevant events for your business, it’s worth spending time in tools like Yahoo! Buzz or Google Trends. Search volume is a great way to understand consumer demand, and there’s a cyclical nature to this. The patterns of searches for recurring events tend to repeat each year. This will provide you not only with the topics of interest, but when they surface in the mind of the consumer. It’s crushing if your product arrives before the event, but after consumer interest has passed.

Good luck with your special events, and next year we hope you’ll join us at the Oscars.

Posted in Commentary | Tags: Academy Award, brand thunder, Branded Browser, custom browser, Dartmouth College, Google Trends, Major League Soccer, Yahoo, Yahoo Buzz | No Comments »

NASCAR Nationwide Series Branded Browser Launches by Kevin Dwinnell

First of all, if you’ve not seen the NASCAR Nationwide Series branded browser – you’ve got to check it out. It is simply a beautiful execution for a stellar brand. It feels like racing.

And give Nationwide their due. Branded browsers have extensive customization and integration capabilities. It can be a tempting playground for any marketer. Yet, the NASCAR Nationwide Series browser is focused on the fan – as it should be.

This is usually the point in the blog where we try to apply some business learning and share it so the blog isn’t just us ranting on about our work. But, I’m at a loss for words. I just love this. Seriously, take a look at it here.

Posted in Commentary, News | Tags: Auto racing, Branded Browser, browser skin, browser theme, custom browser, Motorsports, NASCAR, NASCAR Nationwide Series, Nationwide Series | 1 Comment »

GOALLLLLLL ! Brand Thunder signs Major League Soccer by Patrick Murphy

Brand Thunder Heads into Relationship with Major League Soccer

Brand Thunder, the branded browser specialists, announced today an agreement to bring its Internet browser Booms to Major League Soccer (MLS) and its 15 clubs.

Columbus (PRWEB) February 12, 2009 — Brand Thunder LLC, the branded browser specialists, announced today an agreement to bring its Internet browser Booms to Major League Soccer (MLS) and its 15 clubs.

Soccer fans will soon enjoy an Internet experience tailored specifically to them. Through a small download, their Internet browsers will take on the look, feel and energy of Major League Soccer. Whether they choose the league view or their favorite club, each Boom will feature logos and colors, plus the addition of news, rich media or links specific to their selection.

Booms are lightweight active customizations that can include themes, toolbars, sidebars and other content or functionality. Users can dynamically switch between Booms without restarting their browser.

“Soccer fans are known for their fervor. We needed an Internet offering that lived up to that,” said Chris Schlosser, Director of Digital Strategy for MLS. “We look forward to working collectively with Brand Thunder to bring our passionate fans even closer to their favorite clubs and players.”

“We’re creating a comprehensive and meaningful experience for the true soccer fan,” said Patrick Murphy, founder and CEO of Brand Thunder. “And with our Boom technology, fans aren’t locked into a single view, they can move from club, to league, to another team with a click of their mouse.”

About Brand Thunder,
Formed in April 2007, Brand Thunder creates a more persistent presence between corporate brands and their Internet consumer through its branded-browser customization, which leads to increased website visits and revenue. Through a software installation, end users change the look and feel of their Internet browser into an immersive experience from their favorite sports team, entertainment franchise or internet site. The customized browsers feature official logos, colors, content and functionality, but can also extend capabilities including video, music players or other Internet widgets. Current business partners and clients include the Huffington Post, Major League Soccer, Nationwide / NASCAR, NCAA, NHL, Starpulse.com, Universal Music and Yahoo!. Samples can be found at http://brandthunder.com/gallery/.

About Major League Soccer
Headquartered in New York City, Major League Soccer is the top-flight professional soccer league in the United States and features many stars from the U.S. and around the world. Having recently finished its 13th season, MLS will have 15 teams in the 2009 season, which begins March 19: the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, Chivas USA, Columbus Crew, D.C. United, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Kansas City Wizards, Los Angeles Galaxy, New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution, Real Salt Lake, San Jose Earthquakes, Toronto FC and, in its inaugural season, Seattle Sounders FC. A Philadelphia expansion team will debut in 2010. For more information about MLS, log on to the League’s official Web site at www.MLSnet.com.

Posted in Press Releases | Tags: firefox, soccer | 1 Comment »

Press Relations and 3 Tips for Editing Emails by Kevin Dwinnell

If you want to clarify your message, tell it to someone and have them repeat it back to you. Hold that image, then think about email.

It’s hard enough to convey a concept and have it understood when you’re looking at someone and have the full communication arsenal at hand (body language, intonation, rephrasing). When it’s just the words, you see the inherent difficulty in email communication.

And there lies the big obstacle with modern press relations and getting your story conveyed correctly. There’s a lot of room for error when the only means of communicating with a journalist or blogger is through email.

When Brand Thunder received coverage in Handshake 2.0 this week, Anne Clelland had enough cushion in her deadline to allow a couple of exchanges by email, seeking clarification and detail. You don’t always receive that luxury.

So, when you’re responding to a press inquiry or writing any important email, here are a few quick tips to improve the chances that your message captures the meaning you want, the first time.

1. Read it out loud.

If it’s important, take the extra step to read it aloud. Your ear will hear things your eyes didn’t. This is probably the most effective thing you can do.

2. Step away and then read it again.

A short break can give you a fresh view to what you just wrote, and help you catch confusing or misstated items. Even if it’s just a walk to get a drink of water – step away.

3. Reread it emphasizing different words.

Email doesn’t carry the tone you have in your head. Subtlety is lost on the reader, so you can’t take for granted that what you wrote will be read in the same manner.

Posted in Commentary | Tags: blogger, brand thunder, Branded Browser, communication, custom browser, Email, Journalist, press relations | 1 Comment »

Can Attendance = Presence at a Trade Show? BT Heading SXSW by Kevin Dwinnell

Like any start up, we need to be cash conscious but sometimes separating the “wants” from the “needs” is not easy. We really want to be at SXSW. But in terms of it reaching the audience who buys our service (the brand marketer needing a branded browser), we don’t know if it’s the right show so we don’t know if it’s a need.

Outlined here is our strategy and thoughts for the show.

1. We’re not buying ads at the show.

This is a marketing spend that may help with awareness but, most likely, won’t drive a sale on its own.

2. We didn’t get a booth at the show.

This is a calculated risk. It’s a big cost driver, but gives the personal connection with a prospect that can deepen the interest and really get close to a deal.

3. We’re sending one of the team to attend.

Here’s the big leap of faith and why we’re doing it.

• We have talent in Austin. Michael Kaply, our lead developer, lives in Austin. But proximity isn’t the real value. Mike is one of those rare talents who is not only an amazing and accomplished coder, but he’s aware and articulate about the needs of the business person – and he’s an extrovert. If you’re going to put this task on the shoulders of one person, he’s the guy. (No, I did not give Mike a chance to edit this blog before publishing.)
• Much of the pre-show preparation is the same. Regardless of how we’re attending (booth or just a body), we want to go into the show with a set of pre-scheduled meetings. We’re contacting our partners and prospects, finding out who will be attending and arranging times to meet.
• The networking in the off hours is half the value of the show. It’s amazing how beneficial talking to the person next to you in a line can be, and if you actually get quality time at an after-hours event, even more so. We’ll find out how high our “half-the-value” estimate is.
• The high-quality leads of people seeking us out at the booth will be partially offset by the value of extended interactions at the networking events.

We’ll naturally discuss the results here. But, we’d really like you to meet Mike there and learn how Brand Thunder can help you engage your audience. So, if your headed to SXSW, drop us a line at our Contact page and we’ll arrange a time to meet.

Posted in Commentary | Tags: brand, brand thunder, Branded Browser, custom browser, Marketing and Advertising, South by Southwest, start-up, sxsw, trade show | No Comments »

The Internet Echo – Social Media as Marketing by Kevin Dwinnell

Maybe in space no one can hear you scream, but if you’re well connected – everyone on the Internet can. Just ask Jason Calacanis. (Sorry Jason, that made me laugh.)

We’re not as well connected as Jason, but we remain impressed by the incidental reach social media provides some of the standard marketing initiatives for our branded browsers (Booms). That’s critical for a startup that’s doesn’t have an extensive marketing budget. If you’re willing to put in the energy, effort, and play by the rules of social media – it can be rewarding.

So, if you’re not using social media for your business, we encourage you to try it and see what the ripple effect is for your business.

The following is a snapshot of just the Twittering that resulted from the announcement of Brand Thunder’s funding by Ohio TechAngels:

• The press release dropped Tues, Jan 27.
• I tweeted about it later that day
• By morning, Jan 28, CNET picked up the story
• By afternoon of Jan 28 many more tweets occurred
• International coverage occurred within a day or two
• Corresponding tweets followed.

Twitter Timeline:

Note: Twitter aggregation pulled from TweetBeep’s free email Alerts.

kdwinnell: Funding announcement for Brand Thunder. Woohoo! http://tinyurl.com/d63s4e
Wednesday, January 28th at 00:54:37 · Reply · View Tweet

bblanquera: RT @kdwinnell: Funding announcement for Brand Thunder. Woohoo! http://tinyurl.com/d63s4e
Wednesday, January 28th at 00:56:33 · Reply · View Tweet

bigkumadog: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Ohio TechAngels has invested in Brand Thunder, which reskins Firefox and.. http://tinyurl.com/bh3yw4
Wednesday, January 28th at 16:46:56 · Reply · View Tweet

NewsOnTwitter: CNET NEWS – Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Ohio TechAngels has invested in Brand Thunder, wh.. http://tinyurl.com/bh3yw4
Wednesday, January 28th at 16:49:17 · Reply · View Tweet

logical_caro: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding – Ohio TechAngels has invested in Brand Thunder, which reskins Firefox and s… http://bit.ly/PqCc
Wednesday, January 28th at 16:50:15 · Reply · View Tweet

Duma: [Web2.0] Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that customizes Firefox with.. http://tinyurl.com/dkbhhm
Wednesday, January 28th at 16:56:28 · Reply · View Tweet

TechRSS: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Ohio TechAngels has invested in Brand Thunder, which reskins Firefox and.. http://tinyurl.com/bh3yw4
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:03:28 · Reply · View Tweet

puleen: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that customizes Firefox with customers’ brand.. http://tinyurl.com/dkbhhm
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:09:34 · Reply · View Tweet

TwitLinksRSS: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding | Digital Media – CNET News: Brand Thunder , a company that customizes Fi.. http://tinyurl.com/bh3yw4
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:09:43 · Reply · View Tweet

junlabao: CNET: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Ohio TechAngels has invested in Brand Thunder, which reskins .. http://tinyurl.com/bh3yw4
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:12:04 · Reply · View Tweet

Webware: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that customizes Firefox with customers’ brand.. http://tinyurl.com/dkbhhm
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:12:26 · Reply · View Tweet

macatron: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that customizes Firefox with customers’ brands.. http://tinyurl.com/cgd2ur
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:24:20 · Reply · View Tweet

logical_caro: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding – Angel investors are putting money into Brand Thunder, which re-skins Firef… http://bit.ly/PqCc
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:30:20 · Reply · View Tweet

TIAS: Brand Thunder, a company that lets people customize Firefox with brands, inked deal with MLS: http://tinyurl.com/cranhb
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:35:55 · Reply · View Tweet

writerhunt: Web 2.0 Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that lets people customize Fir.. http://tinyurl.com/dkbhhm
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:42:18 · Reply · View Tweet

haripakorss: Firefox-branding start-up gets funding: Brand Thunder, a company that lets people customize Firefox with brands.. http://tinyurl.com/dkbhhm
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:50:12 · Reply · View Tweet

brandthunder: Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:52:22 · Reply · View Tweet

MichaelBowers: Retweeting @brandthunder: Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:53:03 · Reply · View Tweet

PhyllisNichols: RT @MichaelBowers Retweeting @brandthunder: Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 17:58:37 · Reply · View Tweet

tomhaney: RT: brandthunder Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 18:09:01 · Reply · View Tweet

chiefgadd: @brandthunder great job getting some more good press! Brand Thunder is one of our Rock Star Central Ohio IT Startups!!! Way to go!!!
Wednesday, January 28th at 18:18:05 · Reply · View Tweet

RickCoplin: RT @chiefgadd: @brandthunder great job getting more good press! Brand Thunder is one of our Rock Star Central Ohio IT Startups! Way to go!
Wednesday, January 28th at 18:24:00 · Reply · View Tweet

RickCoplin: RT @brandthunder: Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 18:25:32 · Reply · View Tweet

bblanquera: RT @RickCoplin: RT @brandthunder: Brand Thunder on CNET! http://snurl.com/avzxu
Wednesday, January 28th at 18:34:08 · Reply · View Tweet

anteek: #News : Firefox-branding start-up gets funding Brand Thunder, a company that lets people customize Firefox with.. http://TwitPWR.com/37X/
Thursday, January 29th at 16:48:50 · Reply · View Tweet

giacomodotta: Brand Thunder: Firefox per valorizzare il brand http://ff.im/-P7uK
Friday, January 30th at 13:29:56 · Reply · View Tweet

masey: Quite a decent Canucks Firefox theme (http://twitpic.com/19b67), amongst others to be found at Brand Thunder now – http://is.gd/hRia
Friday, January 30th at 22:58:36 · Reply · View Tweet

dudtn: “Brand Thunder – FireFox 커스터마이징을 통한 수익모델” http://tinyurl.com/atwybh firefox 테마 참 이쁘네요^^ 돈받고 &
Saturday, January 31st at 13:17:10 · Reply · View Tweet

RickCoplin: Brand Thunder rocks the other side of the planet! http://poprl.com/GQ Who can read/speak Italian?
Monday, February 2nd at 13:22:06 · Reply · View Tweet

Posted in Commentary | Tags: Branded Browser, CNET Networks, custom browser, firefox, Jason Calacanis, marketing, Mozilla Firefox, startup, tweetbeep, Twitter, web 2.0 | 2 Comments »