“Things I’ve Learned from Lately” is a regular compilation of articles that have made me a smarter marketer. Hopefully, they’ll help you, too.

Trying Too Hard with Selfies - Fast Company's Jason Feifer shares the exploits of some brands trying to tap into the selfie phenomenon. The effort is emblematic of past efforts by brands to tap into consumer crazes (e.g., flash mobs). The article points out how all too often these efforts feel forced and instead of drawing users in, they push them away. It shows that an idea needs to keep the consumer at the center, so we deliver what they actually want from brands, not what they want from friends.

The Hottest Social Platform: YouTube - It's no secret that online video is becoming more critical for brands. Look no further than what Facebook is doing by making specific changes to its News Feed algorithm to promote video content for users who have shown they like it or to Instagram which saw a need to add video to its photo-first platform awhile ago. Big brands are taking notice as Valerie Hamilton points out in this Business 2 Community article on how brands are putting an increased emphasis on their YouTube presences. Hamilton shares what the future holds for YouTube and brands and what marketers can learn from successful approaches.

The Real-Time War is Just Beginning - Josh Constine documents Facebook's plans to become more real-time and go after Twitter in this TechCrunch piece. Core to its plans are its abilities to leverage its audience and the fact that its users have real identities. Along the way, Facebook has secured partnerships with media companies to encourage real-time social TV chatter on Facebook. Still, Facebook has a big hurdle to overcome, and that's Twitter's equity as being the place to discuss real-time events. Perhaps, Facebook's biggest challenge is the fact that much of the content shared on the social network isn't public.