We can all agree that we’re scrabbling on slippery ground when it comes to crunching numbers. So what do we do about it?

First, locate the reward.

For this campaign, the real payoff for the user is grabbing a snapshot of their photo (or text message) displayed on Viacom’s iconic Jumbotron in Times Square and sharing it with friends.

Now make this step as simple as possible for the user. (In this example, we send them an email with a direct link to their ‘moment,’ and we allow them to spread the photo with a single click.)

Direct Link:

Upon clicking the “Snapshot” button:

But, what is this interaction exactly?
How do we account for this?; rather, how do we ‘count’ this?

Well, the tricky thing is that this interaction starts with a unique user’s single click, but the real fruit falls when the snapshot is shared. For simplicity’s sake, let’s say the average # of connections for this one user is 126 (the current average # of followers for Twitter users, which seems fair in respect to The Dunbar Number).

So does this count as 1 click and 126 impressions?
Not quite.

What about the out-of-home component? How many eyeballs saw this photo in Times Square? How many people did it affect (passively, subconsciously)?; How many were actually stirred to effect (actively sending in their photo, too)?

Well, if we take into consideration that 1.6 million people pass through Times Square each day (and 500,000 gather there on NYE), then we’ve clearly thrown an exponent into the mix here (though actual computations here are flimsy at best). [src]

A campaign like this must be understood as tracking ‘interaction bundles’ rather than simply impressions or clicks (at the risk of muddying the already murky waters of digital out-of-home vocabulary). The only way to give meaning to numbers here is to qualify rather than quantify:

* Define your verbs (click, txt, view, visit, watch, write, submit, photograph, playback, share, embed)
* Assign worth (find the ‘fruit’)
* Construct goals around collecting as much of this fruit as possible (in this case, getting as many users as possible to share their image with their friends).

Not done yet.

Now calculate the out-of-home spreadability and brand identification piece that’s happening here on a much larger scale than any subset of active users could ever proliferate (no matter how much you subscribe to The Law of the Few).

We end up with a results overview that should remain focused on the brand awareness component, but should also give due credence to the rich ‘interaction bundles’ of the superuser (one who actually employs at least three of these verbs- e.g. visits the site, sees the billboard, sends in content, gets a snapshot, and shares among his social graph).

Have I made you nostalgic for the days of banner ads yet?

It’s been quite the year for Jumbli! It became one of the first 100 verified Facebook apps, took off in popularity on the Times Square Jumbotron (hitting 5.8 plays per second!), launched as an iPhone app on iTunes, found a very devoted audience both online and in bars and restaurants, and even spurred the creation of a Jumbli Addicts support group!

Here’s to another year of growing audiences and engaged addicts players!

A study conducted by Tantala Associates has concluded that digital signs are not linked to traffic accidents. Incidentally, the Clear Channel Spectacolor Jumbotron showcased in the article is the home of Jumbli.

So there you have it. Pretzel up your car? Not our fault.
Now if you’re texting and driving, that’s another story… but still not our fault :)

After the successful launch of GeorgeTweets with TBS and Zoom Media & Marketing earlier this week, we’re psyched to announce that the Kayak.com campaign also kicked off this week!

Score 2 for team Loca!

If you’d like a chance to have your tweet showcased on the big screen (and lots of smaller ones!), head over to GeorgeTweets and tweet away. Many of the tweets will make their way to the live Twitterboard!

We’ll also be showcasing our platform at the main gala this evening, so keep an eye out for Loca’s finest!

Head over to Vh1′s The Great Debates and have your say!

On Facebook? Visit the Vh1 fan page and click on the ‘Featured’ tab to vote from the web.

Need other options? You can text your vote to any one of the featured polls to 87884! Tune in all week to VH1′s The Great Debate at 10/9C for the txt battle of the day.

The polls are featured on MTV’s Times Square billboard twice an hour 24/7 through the end of the week, and are also showcased on over 300 Zoom Media & Marketing screens in bars and restaurants.

Why? No, not because we’re lame… but because we were watching JUMBLI(!!!) continually popping up in the background!

(Forgive the quality… it’s snarked from a tivo via iphone cam.)

What’s more… because our CEO is always prepared for an impromptu moment of Jumbli magic, look what word was played exactly as the clock struck midnight:

The new mantra for ’09: Glory Be to Jumbli!

To add to the intense buzzy-buzz of the day, we’ve teamed up with ObamaMinute to make Wiffiti the interactive centerpiece of the media FRENZY in Times Square today!

Check out our social media release, which has lots of new resources to view and share… as well as the official release.

*Also, a big shout-out to Ken and Dury and the others I met in line at the Somerville polls this morning… and both of whom sent messages to the Obama screen already!