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"The Modern Media Agency Series is presented by IDG. As marketing budgets and priorities shift, tech vendors must embrace digital and social media to change how they relate to prospects. IDC\u2019s Rich Vancil surveyed marketers on spending plans. Learn more.\nIn a single decade, UK-based company Shazam has evolved from a basic song identification service to a worldwide gateway to second-screen experiences alongside some of the world's biggest television shows and events.\nAccording to the company's website, Shazam services more than 200 million people over seven major mobile platforms in more than 200 countries, and 1.5 million new users gravitate towards the app every week, helping to keep the app in the top 10 most downloaded apps of all time in iTunes. This year has also been a banner year for Shazam's integrations into major live events \u2014 the company offered exclusive content and a second-screen experience for viewers of both the Super Bowl and the Grammys. The company has also found permanent installations on primetime network television series, including the incredibly popular reality show American Idol.\n\"There's just been a tremendous scale of growth,\" says Shazam's EVP of marketing, David Jones. \"That's why a lot of TV shows, networks and advertisers want to work with us \u2014 the reach and the fact they can innovate with us at scale to drive results.\"\nSo what is it about the service that makes it irresistible to advertisers, TV shows and even audiences? Turns out, there are plenty of benefits for advertisers and TV shows alike to interact with viewers through Shazam's interface, and people are responding to the added value that \"Shazaming\" brings to ads and shows. Mashable spoke with Jones about the strides the company has made via its ultra-popular media integrations.\nSkyrocketing Engagement with Shows\n\nRight now, 85% of Shazam's users take advantage of the platform through television \u2014 Shazaming shows and ads equally. Jones says that often the intent is to find out what song is playing while on TV, but the company is seeing a noticeable shift towards second-screen activity. This has been to the benefit of many networks looking to boost their primetime ratings. Channels like SyFy, Bravo and USA have embraced Shazam because of the engaging content the app can provide while the user is stalled at the commercial break.\n\"We can identify exactly what you're watching, take you straight into the right place and launch a user into a rich, satisfying experience,\" Jones explains.\nOne of the TV shows to capitalize on Shazam's platform is Covert Affairs, a one-hour spy drama on the USA Network. Jones says that the series promoted its Shazam partnership in two meaningful ways: short promotional ads that reiterate the Shazam capabilities and a \"call to action\" \u2014 the circular \"S\" \u2014 that pops up in the corner of the screen during a show. Jones says that from the call to action, users can grab extra content quickly and save it for commercials.\n\"[The call to action] only needs to be up there for five seconds, then it gets the value processed and it works,\" Jones says.\nThrough Shazam, Covert Affairs not only offered playlists that feature music from the show, but also provided exclusive behind-the-scenes content with the show's stars, Piper Perabo and Christopher Gorham. Jones explains that this added content provides an exclusive experience that keeps viewers engaged in the show from episode to episode. Increased viewership, of course, is why networks are so attracted to Shazam's capabilities.\n\"The whole idea is to bridge you from one episode to the next and to turn a casual viewer into a fan.\" Jones adds.\nPremium Ad Interactions\n\nShazam rang in 2012 with a bang, ramping up to tackle the biggest live sports event in America \u2014 the Super Bowl.\nThe entire game was Shazam-enabled to give up-to-the-minute statistics on the battle between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants. Even the halftime show took its turn with the platform: Users who Shazamed Madonna's performance were granted access to a set list, a live blog and even a free LMFAO remix of Madonna's newest single \"Give Me All Your Luvin.\"\u00A0But, of course, Shazam offered second-screen experiences for the real Super Bowl attraction: the advertisements. Shazam has been supporting advertisements in earnest since 2010, with clients like Dockers and Old Navy. For the Super Bowl, Jones says Shazam works with clients to find a seamless and unique way to produce compelling content.\n\"We try to bring content within the app so it's right there, but in some cases we need to link off to third-party, mobile optimized sites,\" Jones explains.\nJones says that more than a quarter of all Super Bowl ads were Shazam-enabled, including commercials from Best Buy, Ford and Pepsi. Jones adds that viewers were 25 times more likely to access Shazam's second-screen content when prompted with a call to action, quite like the successful Shazam strategy of Covert Affairs. For example, the Pepsi commercial above, when Shazamed, not only led to a customized platform that offered access to the song and full music video, but also led to Pepsi's community board and social sharing to other platforms. Across the board, engagement in Super Bowl ads through Shazam was very high.\n\"Because [the audience] knew the Super Bowl was Shazam-enabled, people were Shazaming ads even when there was not a call to action on the screen,\" Jones says. \"Some of them got very pleasant surprises and special offers.\"\nJones added that the amount of Shazam-enabled ads created a community that provided continued engagement throughout the event.\n\u201CPeople were in the habit, more than during a typical viewing period, to use Shazam with their ads,\u201D Jones adds.\nLive Event Perks\n\nJust a week after the Super Bowl, Shazam provided second-screen capabilities to another major American live show, the 54th annual Grammy Awards. Jones says that the company built a rich experience that revolved around the night's nominees and performers. There was even a live blog that was constantly updated to provide the audience with links to relevant music and tips on how to purchase it. One of the night's most popular features was one in which Shazam users could enter a contest to win for tickets to next year's awards. All of these features were rolled into Shazam's second screen experience \u2014 but Jones says that the platform wasn't keen on hogging the spotlight.\n\"Working with the Recording Academy and CBS, we promoted the Grammy app and another app to get a rich set of content experiences surrounding the Grammys,\" Jones explains.\nThroughout the course of the night, there were over half a million \"Grammys\" tags on Shazam, with no on-screen calls to action or promotions by CBS. The night was successful and also presented a new set of challenges to the Shazam team.\n\"By definition, there's only one event, so we have to customize the experience for that one event,\" Jones explains. \"Everything is riding on nailing the experience and adding a ton of value for the users.\"\nSo Why Use Shazam?\nThe bottom line? Jones says that incorporating Shazam into television \u2014 whether through ads, scripted series or live television \u2014 equals increased engagement. When comparing Shazam's tags to Facebook Likes or tweets, data from an average show indicates that there are more tags through Shazam than tweets and Likes combined on day of air.\n\"In five or so seconds on screen,you can literally double the engagement that you're getting on social media through these rich Shazam experiences,\" says Jones.\nAnd it keeps getting bigger \u2014 Shazam is expanding even further into television events in the U.S. and UK, and more ads are also employing the platform for increased engagement. If the second screen really is the wave of the future, then Shazam is ready to ride that wave towards success.\nSeries presented by IDG\n\n\u00A0\nThe Modern Media Agency Series is presented by IDG. Tech marketers have told IDC that more than half their 2011 budgets went to digital programs and company websites. And, this year social marketing, websites, and direct marketing will benefit from the biggest budget increases. IDC\u2019s Rich Vancil says the shift in budgets mean marketers need to form new relationships with their IT and sales colleagues. See the research and recommendations here.\nPhoto courtesy of Shazam."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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