Where will social networking be in 5 years?

The future of social networking has littered the press in recent weeks… in fact, it was almost in danger of taking the mantle off Piggy flu. But what lies ahead for the social networking giants? Will the nation’s youth continue its love affair with Facebook? Will Twitter maintain to dominate the micro-blogosphere? And will MySpace finally choose a direction and stick to it?!!

We asked Dubit member, Claudia, for her thoughts…

By definition, a social network is a social structure made up of individuals or organizations tied by specific types of inter-dependency, such as friendship or a relationship of beliefs. In reality, a social network is much more than this…

My personal preference is Facebook – the UK’s most popular social networking site – for the simple reason that everyone is on it; why would I need to sign up to anything else when all my friends are on one large network?

I find that there is also a certain satisfaction to using these social networking sites - Facebook in particular allows us to see into other people’s lives without having to ask: this summer’s holiday, or perhaps last weekend’s antics all readily available in just a few clicks.

However, as amazing as these social networking sites are, they all have downsides. Safety is a huge issue: parents understandably panic over letting their children post all their personal information online where almost anyone can access them. Although networking sites are becoming a lot more cautious about identity theft, there is still the available option some choose to allow anyone on the net to look at their personal information.

MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Friendster; any social networking site you can think of all have the unavoidable problem of false identity - anyone can create an account, pretending to be someone they’re not. This could lead to cyber-stalking and even harassment - definitely not something we want to face.

So is it really worth the risk just to waste precious hours of our lives chatting to our friends in a more effortless, impersonal and lazy way, when actually we should be encouraging our youth to develop their communication skills in person and get outside rather than stay at home in front of the computer screen all day?

Personally, I think they are great creations - the gift of virtual conversations is one we should appreciate and social networking sites such as Facebook take this one level higher. However there is an unhealthy level of addiction – especially among young teens – that will inevitably become worse over the next 5 years.

So, what I’d like to see from these social sites is a more real approach: removing the many pointless applications that appear for people to use, such as ‘HonestyBox’. Such applications are there for one thing and one thing only, to generate money.

This is something that we are now subject to from an early age: advertising.

Will it decline over the next 5 years… no!! Social network sites are big new, both in advertising and revenue. Since there humble urban beginnings, they have quickly turned into money driven juggernaut hurtling towards the big city – with their sights on the financial district.

So… where will social network sites be in 5 years time? Who knows… maybe the new T.V?

Student Marketing... What can we learn?

Are your student campaigns having an impact? Is being on campus where you really need to be to reach 18 - 24 year olds – and what do you need to do to stand out from the crowd?

We sampled over 800 students across 42 universities to find out what campaigns they recalled over the last academic year, which they thought were the best and which activities had the most impact upon them.

Domino’s is the king when it comes to student activity, being by far and away the most frequently recalled campaign, with 44% of students identifying this through unprompted recall. Domino’s was closely followed Red Bull (37%), O2 (32%) and Coca-Cola (27%). Domino’s deal clincher was their ‘free pizza and 50% discount voucher’ combo, on free flow at the Freshers’ Fair and continued on campus all year round.

Although not as frequently recalled, Red Bull activity stood out the most. Students are big fans of the adapted Mini Cooper (complete with super-sized Red Bull can on the back) and state that knowing people who work for Red Bull had increased the positive image of the brand. Red Bull also provided freebies throughout the year on campus as well as at Uni sporting events and parties, which only further supported their popularity. Other influential factors included “good looking” promotional staff, posters and advertising.

Whilst quirky and creative marketing does help stand out, students felt that the most successful campaigns (i.e. campaigns they participate in or acted up) were based around flyers and posters around campus (53%). Free samples (51%), discount vouchers and coupons (38%) and having a presence at the Freshers’ Fair (28%) were other activities that students considered to have most effect on them.

With more and more brands targeting the student audience you may think the market place is becoming too crowded, but only 6% of students think there is too much promotional activity on campus. So there is still room for brands to reach students this year and you now know the best way to engage them.

If you want to know how social media, online, events or other media channels impact upon students then please give us a call. If you want to target students this year and need help creating a campaign or even delivering the activity, then please contact the Dubit Marketing Team on 0113 3947920.

Dubit to lend a hand to WORLDbytes...

WORLDbytes is a UK based charity set up to provide educational projects and provide international understanding through raising much needed debates.

Global equality is the main centre of the charity and the aim is to show everyone that in our world everyone is equal and we all have the same right to enjoy our lives with equal happiness... hence their slogan; 'Ferrari’s for all.'

They are encouraging young people like you to examine the real world and support your peers using film and new media technologies. Interested? Keep on reading!

Volunteers don’t need any skills, so don’t worry!!

Just come along with a passionate frame of mind and we’ll have endless jobs for you! Just fill in the Volunteer enquiry form at http://www.worldbytes.org/training-booking.html.

You can attend an open evening to meet the team and tell them of your needs and interests. And from there your opportunities are numerous! They include jobs such as ‘London Behind the scenes’. This basically gave a number of our ambitious volunteers a chance to do an on-foot tour of London and produce a film uncovering the reality of the industry, the way things really are.

However this is no ordinary tour. You will discover the hidden treasures and darkest secrets of London town, whilst filming a programme to be screened on the run up to the Olympics. ‘The More the Merrier’, is an example of what has been produced so far by ‘London Behind the scenes’, so get stuck in and your film could be up there!

Or for something a little more adventurous, volunteers have recently shot ‘Flush it!’ – A film based on a lot more than just loos! Each volunteer, many of which were shooting for the first time, explored pumping stations, sanitary ware, fresh water reservoirs, you name it. The volunteers experienced film training throughout the process and gained hands on experience with the equipment. Sign up to WORLDbytes charity, and you could join in on the fun.

There is a huge range of jobs for volunteers: take part in projects similar to those above: shoot programmes, links and extra material, join a current team of actors... pretty much anything that will help advance global perspectives.

The best thing is that it can be based almost anywhere and is very flexible time wise.

Your creations will be broadcasted on WORLDbyte’s monthly alternative news programme to spread the word and open up the organisations to potential newcomers. All reports and programmes are filmed by the young volunteers themselves and feature hard truths and hidden tales of current affairs that are covered by the mainstream media.

Volunteers for WORLDbytes are of all ages, so fitting in is never a problem. Meet some of the crew:

Benjamin Hoyte: Hi, I'm Ben I'm 15 years of age and I go to Stratford Secondary School and I'm currently in my last year. I want to become a journalist-newsreader and that's why I volunteer with WORLDbytes. I think this is a great opportunity to express my many views on things that occur in today's society.

Robert: Male, 23 years old. Half French, half English. I currently freelance as fixer and researcher and logger, and would like to start an independent production company. Why WORLDbytes: Great Programme. I want to learn more skills in lighting & camera work, and WORLDbytes will help me to do this.

So what we’re trying to say is, becoming part of the charity can offer young people experience and training in technical equipment, so don’t be afraid, join the creative crew today - your opinion counts too and your chance to be heard through the news channel is through WORLDbytes!

The Dubit Marketing Team takes on Jaws...

... Oops, I mean Jowls:

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

GCSEs from a pupil’s perspective - By Claudia Turnbull, 16.

From the age of 5 you are told GCSEs are the most important exams of your life. They’re not. Although they are an important gateway into further education, most people I know including myself probably spent more time revising for year 7 end of year exams than the actual GCSEs themselves. It is still vital however to keep up with work, especially for the subjects you are most interested in continuing in.

I am generally a hard working person and revision has never been a huge problem for me, but working on 11 subjects up to GCSE standard all in the space of a month is pretty hard going. During my mocks, I found that balancing revision for all these subjects was hard and so I set myself goals to start GCSE preparation well in advance. I didn’t achieve these goals; about 2 weeks before my actual exams I realised that I hadn’t done close to as much revision as I should have.

My friends were all in the same boat, so my advice to anyone nearing their GCSEs is to prepare yourself and pace your revision – the last thing you want to be doing is staying up until a stupid hour in the morning doing last minute preparation which is what a lot of people end up doing. That said, going over the whole syllabus of your exam the night before or even hours before your exam is a good way to make last minute information stick in your head. I left the last bits of my revision to do when I was in bed, right before I went to sleep as I found that this way I could remember the information for the exam, even if it meant I forgot it all in the days after the exam.

On receiving my exam timetable, I realised I had days with up to 3 heavy exams one after another and then days with only one short exam. It’s frustrating, but you just get through it. I think the main problem with the GCSE process is the boredom that everyone experiences with constant revision. Social lives diminish and going on Facebook or watching TV is a continuous temptation that we must resist. I think a small balance is definitely needed: I found myself on Facebook numerous times when I should have been revising, and the odd day spent out with my friends was wasted revision time. However, I don’t think this was time badly spent - everyone needs time to rest and recuperate as GCSEs are a lot more stressful than you think. Parents don’t seem to understand this – mine didn’t anyway as they urged me to stay in as much as possible, avoiding most social activities until my exams were over. They needed to realise that this is not always the key to exam success.

Another good thing to remember is to stay calm whatever. Going into the exam room feeling confident is always a plus; one of my best friends has chosen English Literature as one of her A level options. During our English Literature GCSE, she had a panic attack as she was running out of time and realised she had done the wrong question. There’s a good chance this has affected the grade she deserves, and so I now know that to achieve your best you should always stay calm and collected.

Last minute panics and the realisation that I didn’t have the right material to revise from is something everyone experiences, but somehow everyone gets there in the end and most people are pleasantly surprised on results day. I lost my entire Geography folder about a week before I went on study leave, and I haven’t found it since. I got round it though by photocopying one of my friend’s entire folder and actually it turned out fine – I thought the exam went pretty well.

Often I found that after completing an exam I felt I had written a good paper, however on walking out of the exam room and comparing answers with my friends, my view completely turned, and I felt I had messed the exam up completely. I haven’t received my results yet, but from speaking to friends in older years that have already done their GCSEs and got their grades, I realise that this happens to everyone, and most people do a lot better than they think they will. Fingers crossed this will be the same for me.

Looking back, I think I could have done more work than I did, but I think if I could do my GCSEs all over again, I wouldn’t actually do anymore work. Revising constantly is too much for anyone and I realise now that I did a lot more preparation than I thought at the time. The build up to GCSEs is so great throughout your lower school education that during the exams everyone had almost heard enough of the GCSE hype to bother with much work. The best thing I found is to remind yourself of the long and carefree summer holiday that lies ahead of you, and it will all be worth it to knuckle down and work for the last couple of weeks.

Overall, the GCSE process was long winded and stressful. Two years of constant pressure and work all comes down to a few weeks of exams. I know some people who even cried in their language orals due to the immense pressure they felt they were under. I think the strain is too much for what GCSEs actually are, although the pressure certainly helps motivate you to revise more!

July Trends... From our Insider Panel.

Hi and welcome to the trends article.

This month’s Vox Pop delves into the life of our London Town girl Victoria.

After a rather traumatic few months of revision and exams for the 18 year old, Vix has taken time out of her lackadaisical summer plans to share her future aspirations, as well as some of her favourite brands.

Plus... as normal we’ll ask our panel to cast their opinion on some notable trends that have caught our eye this month!! We have 12 no nonsense 14-24 year olds, that aren’t scared of voicing their opinion... no matter how critical it may be!!

They’ll also be asked to mark each individual contender out of 10... giving us a ‘top tip’ to look out for.

As a special feature this month we’ve also got the low down from 15 year old Claudia on the trauma that is GCSE’s! As we all probably remember from our old school days (even if they are longer ago than we would like to admit), GCSEs dominate pretty much your entire time at school. Claudia has just finished hers and tells us all about GCSE’s from a 2009 pupil’s perspective! Check out Claudia’s insightful piece after this month’s top trends.

Feature Blog

For this month’s feature blog we’ll be introducing you to another one of our very own trends panel members! This month we meet Vix, a talented musician and keen traveller.

The A-Level students’ creative piece describes her plans to eventually enter the world of advertising, however before that she plans to take a gap year in Canada and study the History of Art at York or Nottingham.

Take a look at the link below to check out this artistic clip...

Next month we’ll reveal the secret life of yet another panel member. If you’ve got any questions you’d like us to ask, get in touch!! In the mean time, it’s time to see what Vix and our eager panel posy have to say on the newest set of trends...

TOP 5 JULY TRENDS

INVENTIVE SUMMER SPORTS

Forget walks in the country, or even visiting your local skate park this summer. Why not try something new and quirky...

In fact, why don’t you try a spot of Sumo Wrestling? Well that’s exactly what NYC trend reporter/jewellery designer Jovana Djuric did.

Sumo in the Park, an all-female sumo wrestling league was held in Prospect Park a couple weeks ago and attacked the attention of commuters in their hundreds.

So not to be out done, we’ve decided to set up our own Asian inspired games... Kabaddi In the Park, to be held in Hyde Park, London.

But what’s Kabaddi I hear you cry? Well, it’s a team sport originally from India.

Two teams occupy opposite halves of a field and take turns sending a "raider" into the other half, in order to win points by tagging or wrestling members of the opposing team; the raider then tries to return to his own half.

Please bear in mind this is all whilst holding their breath!! Watch this space...

RATING; 6/10

COMMENTS;

• 2/10; I definitely wouldn’t have a go at female sumo wrestling or Kabaddi... I’d much rather stick with the more conventional sports that don’t involve holding my breath or pushing someone around!
• 10/10; It’s always nice to bring continental sports over to the UK, not sure about the sumo one though. I don’t want some big ‘un flattening me.
• 6/10; Not a fan of any form of wrestling and I don’t think it’s a very feminine sport, or flattering! The Kabaddi sounds fun though, and it’s something different which is good... could be a laugh to watch!

FAKE FRIENDS BUSINESS BOOMING!!

Planning a party? Guest list looking a little thin? Well a Japanese firm could have the solution for you...

Office Agents, a Tokyo based company, rents out friends, colleagues and even relatives for a hefty sum... and for a worst case scenario they can even send you a stand-in lover.

Describing the necessary credentials for his "fakers", Mr Mizutani told The Telegraph: "They are cheery and clean and look like they have regular jobs."

Despite the current economic climate, Office Agents continues to thrive as the socially challenged try to beef up their guest lists.

So the next time you’re at a party, just think, how many are actually ‘real’ friends?!

RATING; 4/10

COMMENTS;

• 8/10; I think this is a hilarious idea! Obviously there are going to be problems with consistency when people ask to see ‘that hilarious friend from work’ again, but it’s a fun idea. Surely just a ‘friends only’ escort agency though?
• 4/10; This is a bit surreal. I would be a bit disappointed if I had to pay for guests at my own wedding but if your desperate to impress then it’s a good idea, I guess.
• 0/10; Weird and creepy

PEUGEOT METROMORPH

The cars featured in Minority Report may not be as far away as you think...

Peugeot’s Metromorph concept is designed to face the ever-growing issues of metropolitan cities... parking!

No longer will you have to fight for the last remaining spot. Simply drive up the wall of your building, park up and step into your rather plush flat.

That’s right, not only is your sleek new toy a means of transportation, it also transforms into a balcony.

Not convinced? Take a peak: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO-yonpKjq4

RATING; 6/10

COMMENTS;

• 6/10; Ridiculously clever but who would drive one of those?!!
• 2/10; Ugly car design and I don’t really understand how it would become a balcony. I think more design concepts and research into target markets would be needed for this to take off.
• 9/10; Well that's my first car sorted!!!

POTTY TAIWAN RESTAURANT

Whilst the financial crisis continues to strangle businesses, companies continue to look for quirky ways to make them stick out from their competitors.

Check out Taiwan’s Modern Toilet (http://www.moderntoilet.com.tw/en/about.asp).

Set up in 2004, the hugely successful restaurant chain started off selling poo-shaped ice cream, presented in containers shaped like squat toilets.

Since then, Modern Toilet have taken things a step further as diners can now enjoy a full dining themed experience...

Eating noodles out of a toilet bowl, yummy!!

RATING; 6/10

COMMENTS;

• 10/10 This is a brilliant idea, and it’d be great if this sort of thing became widespread.
• 7/10 Clearly a great idea but why aren’t we seeing any if it is really that good?
• 8/10 Great idea, reduces the commonly hated sight of them and the space issues.

OLD SCHOOL CASSETTE WALLETS

One of most popular and now redundant forms of listening to music has finally been made into something more useful...

CASSETTE WALLETS!!

This old school design might be lost on Gen Z, however it should have most Gen Y’s clambering over their mouse’s to get hold of the one-off wallets.

All designs are complete one-offs and handmade by Italian designer Marcella Foschi.

A definite purchase for any 80’s child!!

RATING; 8/10

COMMENTS;

• 10/10; THESE LOOK SO AMAZING – I WOULD KILL FOR ONE THEY ARE JUST TOO BRILLIANT!
• 4/10; There is a reason why MP3’s were invented.
• 8/10; Shame Father’s Day has just gone, I’d have got him one of these!!!!

Round Up

A month dominated by Asian inspired trends saw the old school cassette wallets scrape top spot.

Our panel loved the ‘once it’s gone, it’s gone’ uniqueness, plus they couldn’t get enough of the 80’s inspired design.

At the other end of the spectrum, it was Japan’s Office Agents that saw the brunt of the backlash. One Insider commented: Why would you want to share your wedding vows with complete strangers... it’s truly ludicrous.