Image by NEXT Berlin Andrew Keen remains the most constant and prolific critic of digital media advances and their impact on society. His books Digital Vertigo and Cult of the Amateur have made him a bit of a pariah in some circles, and an intellectual hero in others. He was the ideal choice to close xPotomac on February 25, as the conference discussed future technologies. This podcast offers a sneak preview, which is also transcribed below… We got into all sorts of fun things, including big data, influencers, privacy and other digital termites. GL: Well, we’re really excited to have you here in D.C. and I can’t wait to see you. First of all, for people that don’t know you, …

Image by OakleyOriginals In building the program for xPotomac (February 25th), I sought to address a sea change in media evolution. That change spells the end for the social PR revolution, a marketing movement embodied by brand-led conversations over the past seven years. We are currently experiencing a throttling of branded, online grassroots power. Specifically, it’s becoming harder and harder for marketers to be seen with branded earned media and social updates. This evolution is best evidenced by the increasing role of owned and paid content placement (as discussed, content marketing is the 21st century nice description of advertising), and social or native advertising. Other signs evidence this change, too. Social search and stronger policing of black hat SEO by …

BlogPotomac, my old social media conference, returns on February 25, 2013 under the new name xPotomac. The opening salvo in the xPotomac series features seven new media technologies impacting businesses and marketers now and in the immediate future, hand-picked by myself and conference partner Patrick Ashamalla. We’ve already got our keynotes and emcee lined up, too! To distinguish xPotomac, the event will feature a “gladiator” presentation format with conversations only and no powerpoints. Speakers will present in a tight setting with the stage centered in the round or in a horseshoe formation. Each session speaker has 15 minutes dedicated to their topic, followed by 30 minutes of question and answer from the audience. More on the revised conference after the …

Why, why, why create yet another type of marketing? Well, I’m not. It’s just a metaphor for emotionless marketing without personality, a danger we face in the age of marketing automation. Vulcan marketing refers tongue in cheek to an over-focus on big data driven algorithms, automated paths, statistical decision making and content decisions. For those of you not familiar with Star Trek lore, Vulcans do not experience human emotions. The beauty of Spock’s character — half Vulcan and half human — were his struggles to embrace humanity, much like today’s marketers. Understanding Human Motivation Geoff Livingston on Google+

Today’s release of Hubspot 3 marketing automation software at the Inbound Conference marks the rise of dynamic content, a method of customizing the way individuals view content, images or actions. Now small and medium enterprise marketers can easily deploy dynamic content segmented by niches. Dynamic content harnesses database marketing to serve unique content to people based on a wide variety of factors, including their sales history, social media preferences, historical content preferences, and prior interactions with the company. Delivery mechanisms for dynamic content include both online web pages and forms, and emails. Of course, if you engage in direct mail, you can deliver print pieces based on segmentation and individual preferences (depending on your vendor). Geoff Livingston on Google+