Context Optional

Press Coverage in Inside Facebook and The Social Times

kevin — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 04:18:50 +0000

Context Optional has received press coverage for a number of the branded Facebook applications we recently launched, including a couple pieces in Inside Facebook and a piece this week in The Social Times:

Inside Facebook: Context Optional Releases New Facebook App-vertisements

Inside Facebook: New App-vertisements from Microsoft, Miller, and Absolut

The Social Times: The Booming Branded Applications Industry

Job: Ruby on Rails Developer for Social Applications

klep — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:56:45 +0000

Take advantage of the speed and flexibility of Rails while building compelling apps for large brands on social network platforms like Facebook and MySpace. Leverage platform APIs and OpenSocial to build compelling branded experiences. Work directly with clients to rapidly iterate on designs and features. This position offers more than just software development — you will get exposure to Project Management, you’ll work with large companies, and you will potentially development on projects.
Context Optional is a rapidly-growing San Francisco-based provider of social marketing technologies and services to the world’s leading brands and advertising agencies. Context’s Social Application Server(tm), the leading platform for viral marketing campaigns on social networks such as Facebook and MySpace, is used by Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Samsung, CBSSports, Ford, Paramount Pictures, and many more well-known brands. As a leading developer of compelling, fun, clever, snarky, unique, and engaging applications for social networks, Context is changing the way companies advertise.

When you join Context Optional, you will enjoy company benefits that include stock options, health/vision/dental insurance, Fidelity 401(k), pre-tax commuter deductions, casual office environment, office tiki happy hours, and Xbox with Rock Band in the office. This position is located in Context’s headquarters in downtown San Francisco, near Union Square at Market and 3rd Street and convenient to the Montgomery BART stop.

Requirements:

Have used Rails in a production environment
Have a background in CS, preferably BS or MS
Understand why User.find(:all).each is bad
Excellent communication skills

Nice to have:

CS degree from a top school
Have scaled Rails apps to hundreds of thousands of users or more
Have build applications on Facebook or other social networks
Comfortable with CSS / JavaScript

Apply via email to jobs [at] contextoptional [dot] com

Job: Deployment Engineer

klep — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:55:16 +0000

Leverage your background in designing and maintaining scalable server infrastructures to host social applications for the world’s largest brands. Design and build monitoring and deployment tools, detect and address the need for additional capacity, and provide reliable web and database services for our applications.

Context Optional is a rapidly-growing San Francisco-based provider of social marketing technologies and services to the world’s leading brands and advertising agencies. Context’s Social Application Server(tm), the leading platform for viral marketing campaigns on social networks such as Facebook and MySpace, is used by Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Samsung, CBSSports, Ford, Paramount Pictures, and many more well-known brands. As a leading developer of compelling, fun, clever, snarky, unique, and engaging applications for social networks, Context is changing the way companies advertise.

Requirements:

Experience with 3-tier web architecture
Deployment/scalability responsibility on production environment with 100k+ users
Knowledge of UNIX-based platforms (Linux, Solaris in particular)

Nice to have:

Experience with Ruby on Rails, capistrano, and mongrel
Responsibility for > 1,000,000 user architecture
Experience with mysql in dual-master configuration

Apply via email to jobs [at] contextoptional [dot] com

Job: Objective C / Cocoa / iPhone Developer

klep — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 03:54:06 +0000

Use your ObjC skills to build compelling iPhone/Cocoa Touch apps for large brands. Help us turn our proven architecture for building viral applications on social networks into an iPhone platform. Work directly with clients to design features, build prototypes, and rapidly iterate on launch quality mobile applications.
Context Optional is a rapidly-growing San Francisco-based provider of social marketing technologies and services to the world’s leading brands and advertising agencies. Context’s Social Application Server(tm), the leading platform for viral marketing campaigns on social networks such as Facebook and MySpace, is used by Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Samsung, CBSSports, Ford, Paramount Pictures, and many more well-known brands. As a leading developer of compelling, fun, clever, snarky, unique, and engaging applications for social networks, Context is changing the way companies advertise.

Requirements:

Experience with objc and Cocoa development
Experience building and delivering production quality client applications
Strong communication skills

Nice to have:

Experience (even tinkering) with Cocoa Touch
Experience interacting JSON-based web services

Apply via email to jobs [at] contextoptional [dot] com

Context launches 5 new branded applications

kevin — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 19:48:02 +0000

Context just recently launched engaging applications for five major brands:

Kraft One Minute Mogul: Oscar Mayer has a new line of delicious sandwiches – so good that apparently once you try them you’re hooked! So Kraft and Ogilvy worked with Context to build an social game on the Facebook platform that encourages trial through coupons. It’s a very innovative approach to tying online viral marketing to offline store purchases, and we’re excited to see how it goes.

Travel Channel Kidnap!: Travel Channel wants to use a Facebook application to drive traffic to their site, which is always a challenge (people love Facebook, why ever leave?). So Travel and Rapp Collins worked with Context to build a social game where users kidnap their friends to far off places – and in order to escape the hostage must answer a question (then answer for which can be found on Travel Channel). The app includes sophisticated Flash and heavy graphics to meet Travel Channel’s branding guidelines and has seen significant growth since it launched a couple weeks ago. Try to escape!

Absolut Top Bartender: Absolut launched its Facebook page for Absolut Top Bartender. In partnership with NBC, Absolut is sponsoring a series of 5 events in 6 key US markets - New York, Chicago, LA, Miami, San Francisco, Las Vegas - in a search for the best bartender. NBC will film and distribute the real world competition, and all online activity - bartender registration, event organization and promotion, and voting for the best bartender - will be managed by Context using Facebook applications we built for Absolut’s page.

Miller Today I’m Toasting: Miller was looking to engage young people online in an interactive and social way. To meet their goals, Miller and Digitas worked with Context to design and build a toasting application that celebrates everyday with fun random holidays. The application is one of the first branded alcohol apps to launch on Facebook that uses Facebook’s age-gating technology, limiting interactions with the app to those over 21. Did you know that today is Less Salt Day? I’ll toast to that!

Microsoft Got Pies: Microsoft launched its fourth Facebook app with Context, this one called Got Pies to promote IE8. IE8 includes a new web slices feature, which allows users to monitor content on websites via the toolbar. The app allows users to create ’slices’ (in this case slices of pie) and share them with friends, as well as see updates to their friends’ slices via a ‘virtual webslice,’ and for users of IE8, monitor the most popular user-created pies via an actual web slice.

Enjoy!

Microsoft Office Poke featured in San Francisco Chronicle

kevin — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:54:20 +0000

Over the weekend the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an article on brands moving onto Facebook - and started the article with reference to the Office Poke application we built for Microsoft:

Throw a stapler at a Facebook friend, courtesy of Microsoft Office. Become a fan of Victoria’s Secret Pink to discuss favorite bra colors…

The full article can be found on SFGate.com.

Context Optional featured on Marketing Voices

kevin — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:45:53 +0000

Context Optional was featured on this week’s Marketing Voices Podcast with Jennifer Jones. In the interview Jennifer asks about some of the successful social marketing projects we’ve done with Microsoft and Electronic Arts.

Take a listen!

Director / VP Social Marketing Sales and Business Development

kevin — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 17:40:57 +0000

Work with the world’s premier brands to build their presence on major social networks as head of Context’s sales organization. Marketing is changing, and Context needs people who understand how. We’re looking for proven ability to sell innovative, social-media focused marketing campaigns to pioneering agencies and brands.

Context Optional is the premier social marketing agency, providing social marketing technologies and services to the world’s leading brands and advertising agencies. Context’s Social Application Server™, the leading platform for viral marketing campaigns on social networks such as Facebook and MySpace, is used by Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Samsung, CBSSports, Ford, Paramount Pictures, and many more well-known brands. As a leading developer of compelling, fun, clever, snarky, unique, and engaging campaigns for social networks, Context is changing the way companies advertise.

As our Director / VP Sales and Business Development, your job is to work with agencies and brands to formulate and sell an effective social media strategy. In this role, you’ll utilize your relationships with top marketing decision makers at Fortune 1000 companies and major agencies and your deep understanding of how brands are best positioned on sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn to pitch innovative, engaging campaigns. More than a “smile and dial” sales role, we’re looking for creativity and strategic thinking to ensure that our clients receive the best social marketing recommendations for their brands. If you are the savvy, polished interactive marketing and sales guru with a proven track record of success driving revenue through strategic relationships, structuring and managing complex negotiations to successful closure, and a passion and interest in the way social networks are changing the online landscape, then Context Optional has an amazing growth opportunity for you.

When you join Context Optional, you will enjoy company benefits that include stock options, health/vision/dental insurance, Fidelity 401(k), pre-tax commuter deductions, casual office environment, weekly office tiki happy hours, and Xbox with Rock Band in the office. This position is located either in Context’s headquarters in downtown San Francisco, near Union Square at Market and 3rd Street and convenient to the Montgomery BART stop, or in New York City.

Apply via email to jobs [at] contextoptional [dot] com

Context receives mention in The Oregonian

kevin — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 20:38:58 +0000

The Oregonian recently covered Nike’s most recent Facebook application Ballers Network, which connects people for pick-up basketball games in their area.

The article also mentions Context and some of the Facebook applications and marketing we’ve done for clients:

Microsoft, Samsung, McDonald’s and Ford have Facebook applications recently built by a San Francisco-area developer, Context Optional Inc., company co-founder Kevin Barenblat said.

“Father of the Internet” discusses brands and OpenSocial

kevin — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 18:21:29 +0000

Ogilvy, one of our clients, recently shot this interesting interview with Vinton Cerf, widely called the “Father of the Internet” and now Google’s Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist, talking about how social media platforms such as OpenSocial can help brands find the right customers for their products.