Everything we've written in January, 2009
Recent News and Updates
A few good ads
posted by McKenna @ January 23rd, 2009
Last week I was suffering from insomnia. Which meant I was up late reading magazines and watching TV, two things I rarely have time to do, and I saw some interesting ads that I would have otherwise missed.
I don’t know if it was my sleep-deprived state or what, but some of these ads seemed exceptionally good. And they weren’t viral, online or otherwise hyped-up “new” media approaches.
This TV spot from Acura totally mesmerized me. I normally find car ads overblown yet uninspired. This one is neither, and it captured my attention.
This 3D print ad from Kleenex also caught my attention. The tactile component made it jump out to me – much more than anything else in the magazine. I couldn’t tell you what other companies advertised that month, but I definitely remember this one. In fact, I pulled out the insert and stuck it on my office door. I still can’t stop touching the ultra-soft tissue in the middle.
Then I saw a TV ad selling Italian language CDs. At first, I scoffed, thinking that nobody would part with their money on language CDs right now. But then I checked myself and thought: This is brilliant. I’m sure there are many people unable to travel abroad this year, due to the economy. Why not bring a little bit of Italy to them?
Each of these ads relied on a strong strategy and relevant messaging to drive their success. And they were willing to put their advertising dollars into strategies that worked. (In fact, the Kleenex ad is the broadest sampling program in the brand’s history.)
What traditional media are calling out for your ad dollars this year?
Bookmark this article!
Online Marketing
Interactive video? Yes. Interactive video.
posted by Jason Fleck @ January 22nd, 2009
Video, in terms of advertising space, really hasn’t changed - ever. We’re all used to those annoying 1o second clips we’re forced to watch or the ads that pop up on the lower section of the video on YouTube. What if there was a new way to reach out and engage your audience?
Now there is.
Innovid is making some huge advancements in video interaction. Imagine seeing a Coke bottle within a video clip you’re watching. Not out of the ordinary right? Well, what if you could interact with that Coke bottle by mousing over or clicking on it within the video which in turn would cause something to happen? Maybe it takes you to Coke’s website or displays more information within the video. What if advertisers aren’t your thing and you want your blog’s RSS feed to scroll constantly across the background giving you greater exposure?
Innovid makes all this possible and more. I could ramble on, but just go to their site and check out the remarkable things they’re doing.
Do you think it’s going to change the way advertisers display their products within videos? Let me know by leaving a comment below.
Bookmark this article!
Social Media • Trends
Getting Your Feet Wet With Social Media
posted by Dan Baker @ January 21st, 2009
A lot of people have heard about blogs, a lot more people are regular readers of blogs, but very few people (relatively speaking) are regular contributors to a blog. The promise of the social web - that we all have something important to say to our community - is going unfulfilled by many small and medium businesses.
Starting a blog to talk about your expertise is a great way to jump into the fray and show off your specialized knowledge. After all, no one knows your business or your product quite like you do. So how do you get started?
Enter Wordpress. We love Wordpress. When I started blogging, I looked into a few different systems. I started with “custom”, which proved waaay too daunting. I dabbled with Blogger (since purchased by the almighty Google), which proved inflexible. I researched pay-to-play services like Typepad, which proved too costly. Then I met Wordpress, and it was love at first site.
Wordpress, rated the number one blogging platform across the web, is easy to use, powerful, flexible, customizable, has an amazing community, and is extremely cost-effective. We believe so strongly in it’s power as a blogging platform that it’s the only system we use for all our clients. The more we use it, the more we love it.
Sound too good to be true? Do we really have a real, emotional attachment to software? Only one way to find out: if you’re looking to get your feet wet with social media, look no further than Wordpress. And yes, I did say “love at first site.” It’s a pun. And I am very ashamed.
Bookmark this article!
Social Media
Massive response for a miniature ad
posted by Jason Fleck @ January 21st, 2009
Today’s blog post comes from guest blogger Alex Gelhar. Show him some love and comment below.
This morning a coworker forwarded me an article about Miller High Life buying a 1 second advertisement during Super Bowl next weekend (Feb. 2). My first thought was quite literally, “That’s crazy,” but as soon as that gut reaction subsided, I was intrigued.
I wanted to know how a 1 second ad could be effective, and after following the link in the article to the promotional website 1secondad.com, I found out.
The site features rejected takes of everyone’s favorite beer man Windell Middlebrooks filling his one second of fame with everything from catch phrases to painting a picture of the Miller High Life can. Also, there were longer videos of Windell riffing on the ludicrous prices associated with the Super Bowl, from tickets to concessions to advertisements.
Why’s this effective? The Super Bowl is renowned for having the greatest commercials. There are even websites devoted to rating the best Super Bowl ads.
Yet with the reported cost of a 30 second advertisement totaling $3 million dollars for 2009, MillerCoors has found an effective and possibly cheaper method of promoting their brand.
On the MillerCoors website, Senior Brand Manager Kevin Oglesby explains the logic behind the miniature ad.
“Just like our consumers, High Life strives to make smart choices. One second should be plenty of time to remind viewers that Miller High Life is common sense in a bottle.”
That isn’t to say MillerCoors paid pennies for the ad. They had to drop tons of cash for the shoots, website creation, and eventual placement – even if it was less than $3 million. However, the fact that it’s already being hyped online and generating tons of buzz for a commercial is astounding - a 1 second commercial no less. Google the ad or check the Twitter chatter if you need more proof.
In addition to the ad itself, the pre-game publicity and viral response will score MillerCoors tons of attention. For example, while walking around the office I heard “Miller Time!” and other catchphrases echo out of offices, along with subsequent chuckles. And all of this promotion is costing MillerCoors nothing.
While other corporations drain millions in online banner advertising, MillerCoors has embraced the future and accepted new media into their marketing plans. Through PR, promotional websites, and a viral campaign, more people will probably be playing “Where’s Windell?” on February 2 instead of watching the other commercials or even the game for that matter.
This IS social media at its finest.
If this campaign proves successful, and I think it will, it might help usher in a new era of corporate marketing.
Movies have already embraced this trend, as films like The Dark Knight and Tropic Thunder used multiple websites to promote their eventual box office smashes (check out whysoserious.com and rainofmadness.com for examples).
Is it too bold to assume stuffy old corporations that resist change like the plague could embrace such technological advancements? Who knows? But they better decide soon, or risk losing their brand recognition amidst the tides of the recession.
Bookmark this article!
Recent News and Updates • Special Events
Super Bowl Splurge
posted by McKenna @ January 20th, 2009
When I saw this headline after I Googled “Super Bowl Spending,” I thought it was current. Whoops. Looks like 2009 isn’t the first year that the economy has affected the Super Bowl.
Wait, what’s that? The economy might not drag down consumer spending (at least for electronics, which represents a big chunk of spending around the big game) or Super Bowl advertising?
Ad prices are higher than ever — $3 million for a 30-second TV spot. Ticket prices range from $1,800 to over $5K for one ticket.
Huh?!
Maybe all those people who foreclosed on their homes have extra cash to spend on a big-screen TVs or tickets in the nosebleed section of Raymond James Stadium. Maybe advertisers think this is their way of helping to stimulate the economy. At least GM isn’t making its situation worse.
Now I wonder how much more (or less) these advertisers are paying their agencies to create and produce ads for the Cards-Steelers game. Have they chopped creative budgets to adjust for the higher placement prices? If so, will this affect the quality of the ads this year? Enquiring minds want to know.
Bookmark this article!
Social Media
Is there such a thing as TOO viral?
posted by Jason Fleck @ January 16th, 2009
Well, apparently Carl’s Jr. thinks so. I, however, do not and here’s why.
As the saying goes, “any publicity is good publicity.” Carl’s Jr. released an online coupon to 276 lucky contestants to receive a free burger. This coupon was then passed around online through HUNDREDS of message boards and bargain-hunting websites until Carl’s Jr. had to shut down the promotion from too large a response. Finally the story ended up on Wired.
That’s WIRED.com people - A HUGE News site and magazine that covers technology, culture, business and politics. And it’s Google PR (page rank) is 9/10.
The reason Carl’s Jr. ended the promotion was because they were afraid to run out of burgers. And my response: SO? How many of those coming in with coupons for a free burger purchased a drink and fries? So what if they ended up giving out more free burgers than they had originally intended - even though I’m sure meat is the most expensive product to give away for free…
To capture the amount of exposure they received would have cost them millions in advertising. If they would have ran with the idea, it would have been a great way to introduce new customers to a product they probably wouldn’t have tried before. I mean if the burgers sucked, why would anyone want to copy the coupon?
The problem with their situation is they should have anticipated the ‘viralness’ (see I can make up words) of their offer. Who’s going to want a free burger? Answer: everyone. In the future, they’ll have to tailor their campaigns to fit their goals.
Even though they discontinued the promotion, they still received great exposure. Good for them. Now how is this measured? Did this accidental viral campaign increase their sales or customer count? Only time will tell, but I guarantee it didn’t hurt and those numbers are definitely measurable.
In our current economic climate, this is the kind of advertising businesses need to focus on. Let your customers advertise for you for FREE. Maybe you’re not giving away free burgers, but is there an incentive you can offer to your clients or potential clients? I bet there is.
So what do you think? Is there such a thing as TOO viral?
The social media tools available are cost-effective and a great way to reach out to your audience. Let us empower you to use these tools and hype your brand.
Bookmark this article!
Recent News and Updates
It’s not you, it’s me
posted by McKenna @ January 15th, 2009
I know, I know – I’ve heard it all before. You have a great service. You’re a fantastic company. You have amazing products. You win awards and influence your industry. You are really nice to work with. You do great things with great people for fantastic results. I know all that.
But it’s not all about You.
It’s all about Me. The consumer, that is.
It’s tempting to tell customers about all of your company’s great assets. After all, you have a great story to tell. But if you want to get people talking about your products and services – and who doesn’t want some positive chatter about them? – you really need to get over yourself.
A few nights ago, I heard a maddening interview with GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz. It’s actually kind of shocking that Lutz’s handlers – or whichever PR people aren’t currently embroiled in crisis control – let this interview happen.
I think it’s fair to say that Lutz still believes it’s all about GM. In fact, it seems fair to say that Lutz also believes it’s all about him and how he can’t fly on the corporate jet anymore. (I’m crying inside for him, too.)
It’s clear that GM is fighting a losing battle right now, and Lutz’s inability to make it about the customer is digging him even deeper.
So what’s the solution to something like this? How does a business like GM change? And how are you going to avoid GM’s fate this year?
Bookmark this article!
Social Media
Even my mom has a Facebook account
posted by Jason Fleck @ January 14th, 2009
Earlier last week, my mother - who I love dearly - signed up for a Facebook account. I found out - not by a phone call, but through that automated email from Facebook (that we all love…) stating she had added me as a friend.
Being intrigued, but against my better judgment, I accepted her friend request and navigated over to her profile page. She had already added all my other siblings along with her old college roommate she hasn’t talked to in the past thirty years!
Honestly, I was surprised to see her on Facebook, but is it really that strange? Social Media is becoming a larger part of our everyday lives. It’s not just those in their 20s or 30s - the baby boomer generation is becoming more technologically savvy too and it’s time we - as a culture - realize that. They’re starting blogs and hosting podcasts. They’re surfing through the archives at YouTube and submitting their own videos. They’re now interacting together through ways other than a phone call.
These people, just like my mom, are your customers, employees and competitors. They’ve embraced the fact that social media exists and it’s now a part of their daily lives. When are you going to put your commercials in front of these people on YouTube or alert them of a new product or event on Facebook? The answer is now. These tools greatly increase your brands exposure and we can show you how it’s done.
Bookmark this article!
Social Media
Tweetbacks: The future of blogging
posted by Jason Fleck @ January 13th, 2009
Blogging hasn’t changed much since it’s inception. Someone writes a post then readers comment on that post. Pretty simple. Tiered comments and buttons for social bookmarking have surfaced, but ultimately, blogging has been unchanged for the past ten years - until now.
Yesterday, Dan Zarrella (@danzarrella) released his new WordPress Plugin: TweetSuite. TweetSuite includes a variety of features and widgets (you can click the link above to see the entire list of features) with TweetBacks being the most important.
TweetBacks allows others to tweet or retweet your blog post. When someone does this, their tweet (picture and all) is then added below your post - comment style - and is also accompanied by a retweet this button. TweetSuite is an efficient way to increase exposure to your blog. With Twitter on the rise, TweetSuite will be a must for bloggers in 2009.
Stay tuned. I’ll let you know how I like it once it’s installed!
Bookmark this article!
Social Media
The Good (Internet) Samaritan
posted by McKenna @ January 12th, 2009
A recent Tweet from a frustrated mother whose 3-year-old wouldn’t sleep got me thinking: How does the Good Samaritan concept apply to the Internet?
This particular Tweeter, who goes by the name Thordora, got the cops called on her. Fortunately, there wasn’t much of a story beyond her Tweet – her daughter was safe and sound in her bed. But the story has sparked renewed interest in other stories like it, especially the sad tale of Abraham Briggs.
This brings up the question of anonymity, right to privacy and all that fun stuff when using the Web. But for many people, those concepts are hoity-toity ideas that have no bearing when a child’s (or anyone’s) life might be on the line.
A lot of people – especially mothers – have taken Thordora to task for writing that Tweet. One blogger on ParentDish said “she got what as coming to her.” She continues:
“There is such a thing as social responsibility over the Internet. People use the web to create a community. As with a real community, those in a virtual simulation care for and are concerned about all the members, even if they’ve never met. They’re also just as vigilant about protecting that community.”
So when do we use social media for the social good? Is that even important? If you had read this Tweet from Thordora, what would you have done?
Bookmark this article!
Bookmarks