This Spoiler Alert Requires a Therapist and an Analyst

Spoiler Alerts are always a sensitive subject (and very much a first-world problem). And now we’re about to enter into a new frontier of Spoiler Alerts, which henceforth shall be known as the Arrested Development Rule.

Quite simply, at 12:01am on May 26th, 15 new episodes of Arrested Development are going to be released simultaneously on Netflix. Which means, 7.5 hours after its release, somebody could post a major series-ending spoiler on Facebook or Twitter and cause some serious emotional distress.

With the growing popularity of TV producers utilizing this streaming release strategy, it’s time to find a universal rule for handling potential spoilers for this and all future high-profile “TV” programs.

My suggestion is pretty straightforward. When it comes to Spoiler Alerts, utilize the traditional TV calendar timeline. If there are 15 episodes, it seems appropriate to wait 15 weeks so a majority of those that care to have caught up. Yes, that’s nearly four grueling months to not give away any spoilers.

Here’s how it would work for the different types of viewers:

• Binge-watchers: You may not have so many real-life responsibilities (hence, the ability to binge-watch), but please take some responsibility here. Be respectful of where you post and what you say. You are unlikely to have anything spoiled for you, so don’t spoil it for the rest of us.

• Casual viewers: Whether you watch one episode per week or 4 episodes every Saturday night, you essentially have the entire summer to get through it all. Seems pretty reasonable. And don't post about specific episodes unless you're willing to risk that somebody's response could include a reference to an episode you haven't seen yet.

• First-Timers: Inevitably, some people who’ve never seen the show before will get caught up in the hype and start watching AD in order, beginning with Season One. Unless you can get through it all in just a few months, you should take certain precautions when online. For example, Google search’s auto-fill does NOT come with a Spoiler Alert function so I’d recommend that you not look up anything AD-related.

So does the moratorium just end 15 weeks later on September 1^st? Well, I believe you should always post cautiously about TV, especially with major plot developments. But as time goes by, the Spoiler Alert onus falls from those in the know to those who want to stay out of the know.

Maeby I’m right about this. Maeby I’m wrong. What do you think?

Leaping Over the Digital Divide

Somebody recently asked me how I successfully made the leap from being a copywriter for mostly traditional media to handling Social Media and Digital projects as well.

My first response was that I’m merely a survivor, not yet a success story. Everything is still moving and changing way too quickly to announce to the world that you know everything there is to know.

I have no doubt that most creatives with a solid background in print, broadcast, promotions etc can make the transition. But in my experience, the hardest part of the transition is convincing somebody else you can do it. But here are a few helpful hints for traditional creatives (especially copywriters) to help build a foundation and hopefully make a smooth transition into the future.

• Grow your digital footprint: If this piece of advice never occurred to you, you might be too far behind the curve already. But hey, it’s never too late. Get your profile up (and more importantly, up to date) on the major sites.

• Treat Twitter as a professional tool: Don’t just use it as another venue to tell your friends what you ate for lunch. Follow leaders in advertising, marketing, social media, PR and any other industry that interests you. And if you’re having trouble finding “leaders,” the next best thing is to follow me ;) here.

• Track the digital presence of potential bosses/clients: If you sniff a job opening at Agency Y where you’d be working on Client X, of course you know to go to these company websites. But make sure to find out what else they’re saying online and where they’re saying it.

• Teach yourself how to put together a Facebook Business Page: Do you have any spec print work in your book? Well, now you can do SM spec work without calling in the digital cavalry to help put it together.

• Know the basics of all the latest in digital, social, and mobile: You don’t really “get” foursquare? That’s ok. But you better be able to check-in, and more importantly, understand why so many people enjoy doing so.

• Keep generating ideas: Nobody really knows what will be the next big thing, and we’ve barely scratched the surface on how to engage consumers with the options already out there. But if you keep thinking and jotting down thoughts, agencies will believe you could be just the person to help them successfully make the leap too.

I’m sure I left out a few hints. And I’m even more certain that in six months time there will be even newer info to consider. But for now, this advice should help keep your goals in perspective for what seems like a very daunting task.

Reality Bites for Social Media

I don’t know the exact number or percentage, but let’s just assume a lot of 30-40 year olds use some form of social media. Most of them are at least using Facebook, This isn’t exactly news (unless you’ve jumped into your Hot Tub Time Machine and set it for 2007).

So why was Corey Haim’s death yesterday not really that big of a deal? Some factors might be that based on his past history, it wasn’t exactly shocking. Or maybe his story is truly a tragic tale, and the internet is a bit more lighthearted. Or maybe a has-been is still a has-been, even in death.

I’d like to throw my theory into the ring…30+ year olds “use” social media, but don’t “utilize” it. What I mean is that good old Generation X (of which I’m a card carrying member) isn’t taking advantage of all that Twitter and its real-time venues have to offer.

Everybody 30-40 knows the Corey Haim movies, and his decades long struggle with drugs. But based on what I noticed from my social network and Twitter’s trending topics, most people just said “RIP Corey” and moved on with their day. From the new stay-at-home moms to the hipsters, there was hardly any ongoing discussion.

For my tiny sliver of the online community, this should’ve been almost Michael Jackson-esque, but it was closer to Tito Jackson-esque. I don’t think it was the story, I think its that the story was targeted to a group that spends a lot of time online but not in a way that’s drastically different than how we used it 5 years ago. Too many of us get our online information from the same websites we ‘ve always used. This is just another way that demonstrates we’re slowly becoming ingrained in our patterns, just like our parents.

If your brand is speaking to this 30-40 year old market, you can definitely reach them online. But be sure to ask yourself whether or not you truly believe they’ll reach back.