May 8 2013

Since the dawn of time, human beings have attempted to accumulate assets in their quest for happiness. Yet, this fundamental principle of an ownership-based economy is currently being challenged and redefined, as one of the numerous side-effects of the digital revolution. For the first time in history, we marketers are expected to attract consumers who have everything and nothing at all. Confused? This article is for you.

Does matter still matter?

Throughout the entire human (pre)history, transactions were based on a simple principle: we pay for gaining ownership over certain merchandise. Whether the payment was done with goats, gold coins, government-issued bills, or modern credit cards – this principle remained the same. In other words, the fundamental logic of commerce was based on a (now obsolete) reasoning: that enjoying a product depends on owning it; that resources are limited and thus so are their end-products; and that because of the two previous principles – ownership is expensive.

This logic held until the digital revolution taught us otherwise. Suddenly, in order to enjoy a new song, book, film, and often services – there is no longer need to purchase any physical material (i.e., paper books, vinyl records, magnetic tape cassettes, metal CDs, etc.). The physical matter no longer matters; it is the digital encoding that we’re after – now available to all for very little money. For example, with a simple internet connection and a symbolic monthly fee, any individual could buy access to more music than she or he could ever listen to in an entire lifetime. This new understanding is the exact opposite of the previous one: ownership is no longer necessary for consumption; resources are infinite; and because of the two former principles, access to services is now accessible to all!

But there’s more! It’s not only that we’ve all won the “digital lottery” and can afford any source of digital services we want. The fact that we now experience, rather than own, means there is no need to go all the way to the ‘right’ store (to find your indie artist), to stock them (in your over-crowded attic), protect them (from bad weather, thieves, and your own senility), or (re)package them every time you move. Welcome to the world of zero-maintenance! And we haven’t even mentioned the creative industry which can now directly access its audience, free of any economic, political, cultural, or even logistic barriers. But the biggest winner of it all is the environment, where so many down-stream effects can now be eliminated.

“What’s the name of the game?”

The abolishment of ownership over a whole range of products turned entire fields of consumer’s goods irrelevant in this new economy, whereas new (digital) ones have emerged. It is no longer about manufacturing the best product and convincing consumers to buy it. It is rather about developing the most significant added-value experience and making consumers acknowledge it (and eventually gain access to it).

This transformation has re-defined the nature of brands’ relationship with their consumers, affecting everything we’ve known about branding, marketing, communication, and sales.  In our new reality, abundant with services, content, and entertainment – the new challenge for brands is gaining their customers’ attention.  At a time when consumers are constantly one click away from their favourite entertainment, it is simply not enough to build a funky website or an original TV commercial. In order to make a real impact, brands need campaigns which can stand out in the blizzard of information.

A effective campaign must offer consumers a new holistic experience through multiple parallel platforms and technologies. What do these new techniques consist of? Well, the answer is that there is no answer. The new formula is non-stop innovation. There are no longer ‘one-size-fits-all’ solutions or generic answers. Marketers are now obliged to re-invent the wheel over and over again if they don’t want to go unnoticed. How? ‘Inter-disciplinary collisions’ are the best recipe for success in this ever-changing environment. They are also the topic of my next column. Stay tuned!

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Apr 25 2013

The all-time Belgian classic, published since 1938,  is now more than just a comic-strip journal! Emakina joined forces with Dupuis Editions, creating a digital extension of the comic strip in the form of the Spirou.Z mobile app. In doing so, Dupuis is targeting the children of 2013, using their preferred language: the touch screen.

The Spirou.Z app presents new editions of Spirou but not only! First, users can choose viewing ‘caption by caption’ (using TurboMedia technology), horizontal and vertical scrolling, or a digital flip book. Second, the app features original games and fun activities. Finally, users gain access to extracts from Dupuis’s multimedia archives, unveiling unedited content of the past 75 years!

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Apr 19 2013

Microsoft’s new operating system for mobile devices, Windows 8, was launched just a few months ago. But that’s exactly the kind of new challenges which stimulate our developerse! That’s why a team of Emakina’s mobile experts participated in Microsoft’s Superhackathon competition.

The Superhackathon brought hundreds of young and bright developers who worked simultaneously in four different locations across the country. Their goal was one: create the best Windows 8 app! Unfortunately, only one team can go home with the first prize. Fortunately, it was us…! First, our team won the first place in Mons. Then came the real big news: First place at the national finals went to Emakina’s Fit beast.

Read the rest of this entry »

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Apr 12 2013

This week, global research firm Forrester launched its two yearly WCM report, titled “WCM for Digital Experiences”, presenting an in depth look at the 10 WCM vendors, identified as the “most significant providers in this field”. As a leading European agency, we are very pleased to see that our partners are doing so well!

No surprises at the top of the ranking: Adobe clearly the leader. Their web content management solution is rich, sexy and very user friendly. It features integrated digital asset management capacities with enhanced personalisation features and has a very strong focus on mobile and multi-channel delivery. In combination with their analytics offering, Adobe really has a killer platform that is surely there to stay for the coming years.

After years in which SDL, with Tridion CMS, was in the top category of ‘leaders’, it now shifted to the ‘strong performers’.  No real surprise here either; the market has become much more competitive with several vendors from the middle segment moving up (e.g., Sitecore), as well as open source solutions gradually entering the enterprise market. With the last two releases, SDL made a big step forward with regards to general usability of their platform. However, the integration of the acquired solutions, Fredhopper (now known as SmartTarget) and Calamares (for media asset management), did slow them down.

Sitecore has proven to be a very strong performer in the middle segment, competing with even top vendors in some scenarios.  They have a very powerful product suite, offering web content management, marketing automation, analytics and e-commerce – all from the same platform!

Microsoft is still in the ‘contenders’ category, as it was in the previous 2011 version of the Forrester WCM report. Sharepoint is an enterprise content management platform, mainly focused on document centric collaboration. When using the platform for building public-facing websites, it is highly common to develop intranet and/or extranet systems (on the same platform) as well.  This allows companies to have one platform for all their environments i.e., intranet, extranet, and web.  Sharepoint 2013 is very powerful, yet, you can’t expect it to be competitive with the ‘pure players’ of the WCM field; they clearly lack the marketing tools.

The newbie in Forrester’s report is Acquia with Drupal CMS. Drupal made, and still is making, huge improvements in its platform’s usability. More importantly,  it is getting more and more traction in the enterprise, thanks to Acquia as a driving force within the huge community of ‘drupalistas’. Acquia was the fastest growing company in the US in 2012. It recruited several key players from other CMS vendors and is building a well-organised partner channel. If Acquia can fulfill its vision for web engagement management with Drupal, it will definitely be in the ‘strong performers’ category soon.

Anyway, the future is looking bright! If you want to renew your digital platform, need strategic advice, support on vendor selection or implementation. Do not hesitate to contact us!

Cheers,

Steven Volders.

Technical Vendor Manager Emakina Belgium

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Apr 4 2013

Springtime brings us Fred & Ginger’s new online platform, filled to the brim with colourful kids clothes and a newly added mum-friendly web shop.

Every day a growing number of customers find their way to online shops and the new Fred & Ginger website  is right on trend! The FNG group continues its cross-channel story when online purchases can be picked up or returned and refunded in one of the 30 shops – the improved shop locator will tell you exactly where to go.

Behind these novelties, lie the creative minds of Design is Dead, a proud member of the Emakina Group. Their design for the Fred & Ginger’s site focused on creativity, playfulness, wonder and humour. The Antwerp-based agency also produced a stop motion video that adds movement to the collection and to the site, giving mums a direct link from the featured clothes to the webshop. In short: not a cliché catalogue but a young and playful representation fitting the Fred & Ginger collection.

*Adapted from a post on the Design is Dead News section.

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Oct 30 2012

RTL’s “Les Teknophiles” programme is dedicating its next show to Microsoft’s Windows 8, inviting Emakina’s Alexia Van Cranenbroeck  as a special guest. Alexia will share her thoughts and insights on what the launch of this new operating system really implies.

Windows 8 is a unique combination between a desktop and a tablet interface. Is that good or bad? Should we all upgrade to run Windows in Metro View; or should stick to the traditional desktop of Windows 7? Will the masses go out and buy touch screens to fully benefit from its potential? The programme will attempt to find answers to such questions and to many more!

Today’s programme (in the French language) will be recorded today, October 30, and will become available throughout the evening. Click here to watch it.

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Oct 4 2012

Come and meet the new Web Tools at the October BruGTUG meeting hosted by Emakina.

GTUG (Google Technology User Group) is an informal meetup, open to anyone interested in Google’s developer technologies.

We are happy to welcome an international speaker, Daniel Kurka, who works on GWT, to come talk about this technology. He also created m-gwt and gwt phonegap.

The agenda

18:30 – 19:00 – Welcome
19:00 – 19:30 – Google App Engine with python, the story of our recent experience with devfest.info
19:30 – 20:00 – Bootstrap (CSS) http://twitter.github.com/bootstrap/
20:00 – 21:00 – m-gwt, gwt phone gap (Daniel Kurka)
21:00 – 22:00 – Discussion

Timely registration is required… So go to the registration form here and register today!

WHERE AND WHEN ?

Date: October 11th, 18:00

Location: Emakina Brussels, Rue Middlebourgstraat, 64A, 1170 – Bruxelles

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Jul 26 2012

In order to better serve our current and future clients, Emakina is committed to a never-ending learning process through Research and Development (R&D). Such a research project was recently executed in cooperation and with the generous support of Innoviris, the Brussels Institute for Research and Innovation.

Based within the region of the Belgian capital, Emakina was entitled to public funding, which covered 50% of a year-long study conducted by our employees on all levels. The study analysed the effects of new mobile technologies in general, and the development of optimisation for tablets and smartphone devices, in particular. Thanks to this study (and hopefully future ones to come) Emakina is improving the quality of its services. In fact, the application of the study’s results on incoming projects has already proven to yield great added value.

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Jul 17 2012

Life Capsule is a start-up company which offers individuals the possibility to save their precious and confidential information online. In the event of death, this information and personal memories can be made available to (certain) relatives through a secure website. The Emakina Group was involved in this initiative since its early conceptualisation, through assisting the founders and developing its strategic plan. Emakina is currently launching the company’s stylish website, built in OpenCMS (Java).

Even a sensitive issue as one’s plans for after death has now gained its place on the web; a development which was well-noticed by the two Life Capsule founders. Having dealt with a personal loss of a family member, the two founders searched for a practical way to commemorate their loved one over the Internet. Once they realised that such solution did not yet exist, they decided to create Life Capsule and to materialise their idea.

Life Capsule offers a web platform on which subscribers can preserve personal data which they would like to leave to their chosen ones once they pass away. Each subscriber thus designates those who will have access to their digital material. Such “life capsule” may contain various documents such as: photos, videos, PDF files, but also texts or even musical playlists. This approach also allows transferring confidential information such as access codes for social networks, last wishes, or address lists.

A central part of Life Capsule’s homepage is dedicated to subscribers’ commemoration sites which are made public after they pass away. The company offers various subscription packages, and donates a part of its revenues to the King Baudouin Foundation. Each year, the sums which were donated to this charity organisation will be published on the Life Capsule website.

Complete discretion and high security are among Life Capsule’s top priorities. In order to guarantee that the data are safely secured for many years, the company has sought the help of Emakina’s experts. Being the first digital agency in Belgium, Emakina has proved its broad expertise through its numerous large-scale clients from the financial sector (banks and insurance companies). Furthermore, thanks to the security audit, conducted by Zion Security, Life Capsule can guarantee that its site is immune to online piracy.

The site equally offers its visitors a full range of interesting information on dealing with death, including: writing a testament, last wishes before death, and even delicate issues like euthanasia. Last but not least, the company is establishing a fund, with sufficient funds to maintain its servers and software for the next 50 years, regardless of the financial future of Life Capsule.

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Jul 13 2012

Emakina was hired by the AXA to develop a new website for the Belgian market, based on SharePoint 2010. The goal was to establish a system which facilitates better content distribution between different divisions. This was meant to enable communications teams at AXA to centrally create and maintain the website’s content, while guaranteeing decentralised dissemination across the various distribution channels.

The new solution is revolutionising the way of updating and changing content, with further simplicity. A central content catalogue was created, available for all to see, and facilitating easier distribution. In addition to improving the existing services, Emakina created a new part of the site dedicated to lead generation. Here, clients’ data are collected, and sorted for future reuse, as well as for generating potential prospects or new customers.

The site was the first fruit of close collaboration between Emakina and AXA. This project is a success on many levels; including its technical level, and the user-interface of AXA’s administrators and end-users. Now that the site is online, all the elements and features are in place for visitors, customers and prospects to enjoy.

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Jul 12 2012

In exercise to align the Electrabel’s corporate website to the company’s new B2C and B2B standards, Emakina was hired for building a new upgraded version. The main purpose of the new site was to present general information about Electrabel to well-defined target groups. Such information includes the company’s Corporate Sustainable Development approach, career perspectives, nuclear issues, and more. To ensure coherence of the new approach, even the existing texts were updated and adapted, so they are more readable and fit the new structure.

The result is not only aesthetically refreshing but it is also focused on optimising visitors’ convenience through a user-friendly interface design. The combination of tab-navigation, based on an intuitive hierarchic structure; as well as broad use of multimedia -makes the site enjoyable to visit, and its content easily accessible.

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Jun 29 2012

By Brice Le Blévennec

Ever since Marshall McLuhan coined his famous phrase, we know that “the medium is the message”. Today, this paradigm is no longer valid. The Internet has provided tools and empowered citizens, who are now in control of generating the public discourse. In this new paradigm, the impact and virality of the message depend on the value they create in the consumers’ lives. It is this value that has now become “the message”.
For advertisers, the new challenge is to support the new technology habits of their audiences, by providing communication objects – whether innovation or content – which, by their utility, or emotional richness, constitute an added value, meant to project on the brand.
In our new digital age where abundance rules, an unprecedented economic crisis has rendered the accumulation of assets as an engine of existence – totally obsolete. Brands can attempt to offer answers to the prevailing quest for sense and meaning … as long as they change their communication methods.

Take applications for tablets and mobile phones for examples: the only applications which manage to actually reach the consumer are those which offer a genuine service. Such is the case of the smartphone app, developed by Emakina for Electrabel, allowing customers to measure their energy consumption in real time and turn on/off electric sockets in their home via the Internet. The key added value: less wasted energy, pollution and lower bills.
Tomorrow’s agency is the consumer’s agency; that which intimately understands the needs and aspirations of consumers and which helps the advertiser to create the products and services that meet these expectations. ”But this is the leitmotiv of marketing since twenty years!” you might say with a smile. Of course, but things have dramatically changed with the advent of digital communication.

Up until recently, “old school” marketing was rather expensive. Conducting market research studies required considerable logistic and financial resources. Many advertisers refrained from using such tools, not because of their debatable return on investment (ROI), but rather due to the difficulty of their implementation. Today, the permanent flow of information from social networks allows us to understand the consumer and converse directly with her or him as never before. We can thus return to the essence of marketing, thanks to the power of the Net.

Moreover, in an era flooded by web and smartphones users, digital technologies prove to be an inexhaustible source of innovation. Not only do they create new consumer services, but they also provide potential new revenue sources for businesses. Have you noticed the number of food brands now offering web-based “slimming programs”? This is how they capitalise on your desire for thinness, after profiting from your cravings.

And here we encounter a fundamental difference between traditional advertising agencies, mistresses of the “claims”; and “digital native” agencies. The latter are naturally equipped to operate in this new world. Historically, web agencies have taken account of the user’s perspective, particularly given their ergonomic mission – sometimes at the expense of the client’s wishes. Who could imagine, for example, creating a website whose information architecture reflects the views of the business, rather than the needs of the user? User-bias, rather than client- bias, demonstrably increases ROI.

Classic communication approaches need to change: product, positioning, and agency briefing; campaigns designed to convey a message to a specific audience… that is all passé. Tomorrow’s agencies will have to go further upstream and examine the DNA of the product itself; see if it corresponds with the real concerns and desires of the consumer. When necessary, it’s the agency that will have to become the innovation engine.

Traditional advertising is dead? Probably not. But, next to “paid media” owned by editors and publishers, more and more often do we see brand platforms, online services, and innovative mobile applications gaining ground, seeping into the consumers’ daily lives and changing their behaviour. Is your agency ready for this new challenge? It is not (yet) too late to ask yourself this question.

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Jun 28 2012

As a leader and expert of social TV in France, TVcheckhas an intimate understanding of this medium; its DNA and its internal codes. TVcheck is ranked among the top five tweet generators for TV shows’ hashtags (as measured by Tweatreach), making it a significant player among digital audiences

In the context of the Euro 2012, TVcheck, in partnership with Emakina, found an exciting  way to combine classic football and sports betting with the use of Twitter and livetweet, for creating an enriched sports experience. Specifically, Emakina produced for TVcheck a specialised website, allowing visitors to follow the teams, forecast match results, and win prizes!

Game forecasts are now open

Since June 21, internet users are invited to visit the Euro2012.tvcheck.com website in order to forecast match results. The positioning of each online participant is updated daily, according to the points she or he gains for accurate bets.

In order to win more points, participants can check their forecasts by using the TVcheck iPhone app, once the match is on. The top 10 participants, who have accumulated the highest scores by the end of the tournament will win prizes including: an iPad, gift vouchers, Euro 2012 goodies, etc.

Get to know the most popular teams on Twitter

Apart from facilitating forecasts, during each match the website monitors which of the two rival teams generates more tweets on Twitter. All remaining teams, not playing at the given moment, are also classified and analysed according to their respective Twitter hashtags.

*Translated from a post in French, written by Jérémie Gentien for the Emakina.FR blog

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Jun 4 2012

Want to know what the Cupertino gang are cooking?
Then don’t miss the rendezvous with RTL’s web-magazine, “Les Teknophiles” June 11th at 19h00!

With the Apple WWDC 2012 approaching, developers and fans across the world get in a frenzy.
Apple will showcase the new version of its Operating Systems, iOS 6 and OS X Mountain Lion. Perhaps Apple will unveil a revamped fith-generation iPhone? Some say the new dream device will have a bigger, longer screen! Or will Apple unveil its Apple TV app store? Maybe we will see the thinner MacBook Pro or a new MacBook Air Update (with Retina display)?

After launching the third generation iPad in March, the annual pilgrimage to  San Francisco might once more hold surprises that create a sensation in the world of digital media. As usual, the buzz and Mac Rumors are flying around everywhere…

With all bets on, Emakina’s Chief Visionary Officer Brice Le Blévennec will be watching and interpreting the event as it unfolds. He is a special guest of RTL House, where he will share his insights (and passion) over the Conference content.

Further guests on the show include Frédéric Feytons of TappTic, and Bruno Kesteloot, general manager of MacLine. The show will be aired (in French) monday june 11th at 19:00 Brussels time. Click here to watch it live.

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May 11 2012

The “enchanted era” is a French expression (originally, “la parenthèse enchantée”), describing a period of some twenty years between the 60s and the 80s. It started with the invention of the birth control pill. For the first time in history, women gained control of their own bodies and could actually choose if and when they would get pregnant. The effect of women’s emancipation and the resulting sexual revolution went far. They altered societal values like the nature of relationships between men and women and even of working ethics (in the context of a continuous economic boom). Later, the spread of AIDS in the 80s and the rise of unemployment, brought an end to this careless period, one which brings up nostalgic memories for those who lived through it. A similar kind of an enchanted era is about to end on the Internet.

The enchanted digital era started when the one described above came to an end. It all began in the 80s when corporate computing made its first steps, pioneered by IBM. This was also the time when Apple introduced its first microcomputer, and Microsoft presented its first personal computers. At this point in time, the Internet was only used for military applications and for scientific research.

During the 90s, computers first became a consumer good, now available to the wide public. Suddenly, the word “computer” did not only infer a gigantic mainframe machine, but there were new forms out there, such as the micro-personal computers, or simply PCs. IBM was pushed aside by Microsoft, which equipped (almost) all its computers with its newly-developed operating system, known as Windows. Yet, the software world was in need of much more significant investments than those made by a few pioneers. As for the Internet, it remained an experts-only arena, although at this point the Web already existed, with emerging products like Netscape. Even the first personal assistants, such as Newton and Palm, had already made their first appearance in the market.

The first decade of the 21^st century is the one which sees the reign of the Web. Google replaces Microsoft as the market leader (although the latter’s Internet Explorer continues to dominate the field of browsers) and the enchanted digital era begins: the Web is now based on solid foundations; on technologies which are widely accessible. A new virgin land is found; a territory with no entry barriers. The fact that (almost) anyone could create a website or launch a service created a startup frenzy, with Facebook standing out as the Web’s greatest success story. Apple comes back from its ashes, although its online services (like iTools, Dot Mac, and MobileMe) were still far from anything spectacular. Indeed, the burst of the dot-com bubble, and the 9/11 attacks that followed, slowed down the development of the Web. Yet, it was this decade which brought about an unprecedented wave of creativity, none of which would have been possible if it weren’t for the anarchic and decentralised system of the Internet.

Today’s landscape is again somewhat different. The 2010s will probably be remembered for the extensive use of mobile devices, smartphones, and of permanent Internet connection. The Net is now dictated by several giants who set the rules and impose them on all others. Google, along with its various services, remains the undisputed master of the Web. It is thus absolutely imperative to take into account the complex algorithms of this giant search engine and its way of prioritising digital information – in order to exist online and remain somewhat relevant. Facebook became a daily activity for hundreds of millions, thus having a great impact on our social interactions (like the disappearance of anonymity). Anything is now allowed… as long as you follow a few basic guidelines.

Apple did not only make a brilliant comeback; the company developed an entirely separate “ecosystem” of products which speak their own unique language to one another. It is thus impossible to put forward a new application or a podcast on the AppStore or iTunes without surrendering to the Apple hegemon. In sum, the aspiration for total freedom which prevailed during the dawn of the Internet has been replaced by a rather codified environment, one which is much more predictable. And yet, perhaps this is a necessary price for having large enterprises invest in interactive media and turn the Internet economy into a perennial one.

Of course, there will always be room for smart innovators and entrepreneurs who will introduce new products. But there is a long way to go until such new players could challenge the existing hegemony of the big ones. The latest success stories of startup companies prove exactly that. Zynga and Playfish were both entirely designed to fit the Facebook ecosystem. Angry Birds is an AppStore creature, and YouTube was very quickly caught into the world of Google. An important trend in the history of new technology is thus facing an end. Is this good news or bad news? We’ll find out soon…

*Translated from its original version in French

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