Okay, I’m a dork. I know it. Admit it. Embrace it. And while I don’t watch a bunch of TV, I’m online constantly. Big surprise, I know. This Google TV announcement is awesome. And I know that Microsoft tried to do this and that Apple TV is out there, but I’ve never really paid attention to it until now. For some reason Google got my attention.
This creates issues in my household though. Big issues. We are the people who still have old school TVs all over our house. You know the ones – they weigh about 300 lbs and are the size of a small battleship. Make no mistake — it’s not that my husband isn’t into all the bells and whistles that are an integral part of the flat screen, HiDef, fancy-schmancy TVs that everyone ELSE on the planet apparently has. It’s just that we have a mortgage, a house we’re rehabbing, 4 year old twins … well, you get my drift. There just have been other things more important to us from a budget standpoint than a killer TV.
But with the advent of Google TV, I’m now the one dreaming about new TVs. My husband will be beside himself with glee. Already I’m thinking about all the things that my kids currently cram onto my lap to see on the MacBook Pro that will be oh-so-heavenly on the big screen. Important things. Things like the Peanut Butter Jelly Song, or The Spice Girls singing Wannabe (don’t judge me), or watching the lions and elephants on WildEarthTV as they stream live footage from the Congo in Africa (yes, we do occasionally watch something educational).
Ohhhh, you betcha I’m getting excited (channeling Frances McDormand in Fargo here). And I haven’t even mentioned all the uses I can think of from a work standpoint – can you say “Holy Tax Deduction, Batman.” Shhh. Let’s run this by my accountant first, okay?
And now that I’ve waxed poetic about Google TV from a personal standpoint, as a marketer and someone who is immersed in the worlds of both content generation and content consumption, the ramifications are huge. Designing messages for devices is a big part of what I do, and thinking about how consumers receive and want to receive information is equally huge. My head spins just thinking of the possibilities.
In any event, I’m psyched about Google TV. And I’m the last person on the planet that I ever thought would care about anything related to TV. What about you? Will you be jumping on board or is this just totally no big deal to you? C’mon … let’s hear it.
Shelly Kramer is a Principal Analyst and Founding Partner at Futurum Research. A serial entrepreneur with a technology centric focus, she has worked alongside some of the world’s largest brands to embrace disruption and spur innovation, understand and address the realities of the connected customer, and help navigate the process of digital transformation. She brings 20 years’ experience as a brand strategist to her work at Futurum, and has deep experience helping global companies with marketing challenges, GTM strategies, messaging develoment, and driving strategy and digital transformation for B2B brands across multiple verticals. Shelly’s coverage areas include Collaboration/CX/SaaS, platforms, ESG, and Cybersecurity, as well as topics and trends related to the Future of Work, the transformation of the workplace and how people and technology are driving that transformation. A transplanted New Yorker, she has learned to love life in the Midwest, and has firsthand experience that some of the most innovative minds and most successful companies in the world also happen to live in “flyover country.”
