Archive for August, 2008
August 29th, 2008
Teamwork. We’re taught it as children and it’s encouraged in corporations all over the country. But what about working as a team with another business when advertising? Lots of business owners think that’s opening the door to the coop to let the fox in. But it’s not as crazy as it might sound - a partnership with a complementary business, where you pool your advertising and promotional resources to reach more customers, just might make good business sense.
Take the latest partnership between ladies clothier Ann Taylor and laundry superstar Tide and Downy. Through a new joint venture customers who purchase clothing at Ann Taylor will be encouraged to take care of their clothes to make them last longer and to avoid dry-cleaning bills. Oh, and by the way, here’s a sample of new Tide Total Care and Downy Total Care to do just that. Want more information? How about a special promotional “magazine” produced by the Tide folks with articles, how-tos and coupons for their products? Thanks, and have a nice day.
These two businesses are not competitors but each feeds off the other one. Clothing that lasts longer through better detergents will promote the quality brand promise of Ann Taylor…and consumers also see that if Tide can keep my Ann Taylor blouse looking good longer, maybe I could try it for Junior’s jeans?
Local businesses could team up to cross-promote each other too. A camera store and a frame store…an auto repair shop and a carwash…a bowling alley and a movie rental store. The possiblities are endless. And given the economy and the trend for families to be seeking out deals at every turn, giving them the package deal at a discount would certainly gain more eyeballs and interest than a stand-alone promotion.
August 25th, 2008
At the end of a multi-billion dollar feeding frenzy of hyperbole, nobility, triumph and agony, the Advertising Games that propped up the Beijing Olympics are closed. Was it worth it? The majority say no.If you believe some polling data, the only 3 advertisers who actually reaped any sort of return on their investment were Visa, Coca-Cola and McDonald’s. TNS Media reports:
“Unaided brand awareness for ads seemed surprisingly low with over 52% of Olympic viewers surveyed unable to recall any brands advertised during Olympic programming.”
People were much more likely to recall the advertisers if they were “very interested” in the Olympics…the less interested viewers were in the Games, the less they recalled the advertisers…which only makes sense. Read more about advertisers’ ROI here.
There were some notably GOOD ads, including these from Chevy and GE:
There were some pretty BAD ads too, including this one from Exxon Mobil, a company that tried to re-brand itself as a benevolent force fighting malaria in the Third World, but I don’t think anyone changed their minds about high gas prices and record oil profits through this ad:
Here is the critique from the New York Times’ advertising columnist, who opines about which ads were good, bad or ugly.
Which were your favorites?
August 21st, 2008
Viral Marketing. Seeding. Buzz (pun intended). Haagen Daz, that purveyor of bliss, started a campaign to raise awareness of honey bee colony collapse, and, for an estimated $75,000 paid to a company specializing in viral campaigns, the “Bee Boy Dance Crew” received 2 million hits on this video in two weeks:
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Haagen Daz used the services of a company called Feed Company, which specializes in creating viral campaigns (or, as they call it, “seeding”). They use viral video, word of mouth and search engine optimization to get their results. The Bee Boy Crew was promoted through traditional media - including TV and print ads that say “Plant this Page, Save a Bee” - and through the video-sharing sites like YouTube. The site links to a microsite at HelptheHoneyBees.com where users find out more information and how they can help.
Here are details about the campaign as posted by MediaPost’s Marketing Daily.
Here’s another one about “Projectile Dysfunction” Feed Company seeded for videogame maker Activision (note: video rated “Teen”)
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It’s not too terribly difficult to think that a local company, with a few well-chosen clicks and a clever campaign that will appeal to the Internet culture, could do the same thing. The Internet is very democratic that way. But you have to make sure it’s consistent with your brand, your other marketing efforts and your business goals.
Maybe the Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau could make some waves with that goofy video of Ald. Doug Mark on Geo’s blog.
August 18th, 2008
Adults are abandoning newspapers and getting their news online - we’ve known that for a while now. But they’re also pretty faithful to TV news too, according to the biennial media usage study by Pew Research Center.
Of respondents, the survey found 46 percent still rely heavily on TV for their news. Predictably, younger audiences prefer Internet news sites, and a group that Pew calls the “integrators” is turning to cable news outlets like CNN and Fox News for their fix.
“Integrators” are older, more affluent and at the heart of many advertisers’ wish lists for target audiences.
Pew found that only 34 percent of respondents read a newspaper “the day before,” compared to 40 percent when the survey was conducted two years ago.
What does this mean for traditional newspapers? Sharp declines in ad revenue and slower growth.
For online sites, it means they are reaping what the papers used to sow in terms of ad revenue.
But it also shows that the shift in media habits is happening perhaps more slowly than we sometimes think.
Depending on your audience, you would do far worse than to run an ad on CNN or Fox News if you’re targeting middle-aged adults with disposable incomes.
It also demonstrates that, like most cultural shifts that happen because of a new technology, the rise of the Internet is going to take some time to really shake out…and that it may be a bumpy ride for those who aren’t ready for it and cling to their old ways.
August 14th, 2008
There’s plenty of people out there who get the deer-in-the-headlights look when I say “I work for an ad agency.” So, to shed a little light on what we do, here are answers to two popular questions: How do ad agencies work? And how do I pick one for my business?
How Ad Agencies Work
Ad agencies run the gamut from large multi-nationals to one-man (or -woman) shops. Some just do media buying and ad creative and others do just public and media relations. Most, though, do everything including market research, media buying, ad creative, graphic design, web work, public relations and video production.
Usually you’re assigned a point person for your project, and that person will work closely with you to ensure the end product meets your expectations. At the beginning, there will be some back and forth as we gather background and ideas for the project and then you can expect proofs based on an agreed-upon timeline, which then go through another back and forth period until they’re just right.
We typically have clients that either know what they want right off the bat or come to us just knowing they want to improve their business; in the latter case, we will propose various strategies & tactics to help.
In all cases, clear and honest communication are essential to the agency-client relationship. We do this for a living and have probably heard it all, so don’t be afraid of speaking up. You won’t hurt our feelings. You hire us for our marketing and advertising expertise - we understand your business and goals but we are not experts in your field - you are. If something isn’t right or you have questions, ask. We’d rather get constructive feedback than produce a project that you don’t like.
How To Choose an Agency
Here are some questions you can ask yourself as you start looking at agencies for your project or business:
1. Do you like the work they’ve done for their other clients? While a portfolio is not all-inclusive of an agency’s expertise, it will be representative of their work and you should at least like some of it. But don’t be hoodwinked by the flashing lights and pretty pictures of impressive creative - ask about actual results their clients gained as a result of the project.
2. How long have they been around and do they have long-term clients? An agency that’s been around awhile in this business means they’re probably pretty good at what they do. Agencies that don’t get results have a very short shelf-life. Also look for the number of long-term clients they have - that’s also a pretty good indicator of the quality of their work and customer service. At the same time, look for an agency that regularly brings in new clients as well - new clients keep our creative forces fresh and new.
3. Are you given a list of current and former clients as references? If not, and they won’t provide them after you ask, it might be best to turn tail and run. If an agency does give you referrals, call them!
4. Will they have to outsource parts of your project or is it done in-house? Outsourcing will drive up costs and project timelines. If you need full service, be sure the agency you choose can provide full service. If they just do public relations, for example, they will likely outsource the video project that’s needed for the second phase of the campaign.
5. Finally - do you like and trust the agency’s staff? In most cases, the client-agency partnership is a close one with near daily contact when you’re in the midst of a campaign. It’s important you like and trust the agency’s staff…You don’t have to invite them over for Sunday dinner, but a certain amount of friendliness and goodwill go a very long way.
There are many other nuances and topics I didn’t cover here - these pointers are just a starting point, an introduction to a complicated but beneficial relationship between agency and client.
August 13th, 2008
Marketing is all about image – in more ways than one. The branding campaign that you undertake is about the makeup of your proverbial all-around image, but is rooted in the actual images- the photographs- you choose. The quality of pictures can make or break a campaign.
So how to go about deciding what those photos will be?
1.      Make a list of words that personify your brand or product.Â
2.      Take a look at a stock photo web site such as istockphoto, shutterstock or Getty Images. On stock photo web sites you can use your list of words to begin an almost infinite trek through the volumes of images on these sites, all tagged with key words so that they can be searched. You can gather ideas, explore, and help form the basic visual concepts that will become your branding campaigns. Stock photos are a great springboard for initial ideas.
But did you know that there are strict guidelines for photographers to submit those images? This is why they all seem really good, and you will probably find several that could fit your criteria. Here is a quick look at the areas where quality standards are put in place for submissions:
Focus
Lighting
Noise/color distortion
Over filtering
Quality scanning
Cropping
Nudity
Title, description and key words
Model releases
Property releases
AND… this is after applying to submit photos and passing a quiz, which is not as easy as it may sound. I know more than one professional photographer who did not pass the quiz the first time. So if these are the characteristics that make photographs profit-worthy, it makes sense that a snapshot taken at the office might not be the type of photo you want to place on your branding materials. Â
3.      In order to truly personify your brand or company you may want to hire a professional photographer as opposed to using stock images so that you will have a unique and genuine message. If you are working with an agency, they will be able to help you decipher if stock photos are what you need or if hiring a photographer is a better choice, and help you to choose one.  An agency can also do LAYOUT and DESIGN which is just as important as having great photos. When looking to cut corners, these fundamental basics of photos and design are not the areas you want to trim, in fact I would argue that putting extra time and effort into them will increase your profit even more in the end.
4.      Go forth and seek quality images.
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August 11th, 2008
Wow. The Opening Ceremonies were unbelievable, weren’t they? NBC Universal thinks so too - seeing the highest rated Opening Ceremonies ever for a non-American Summer Games. It had 19% more viewers than Athens four years ago and 16% more than Sydney eight years ago - and averaged 34.2 million viewers.
With what it paid for the Games ($894 million) NBC Universal is counting on a huge number of eyeballs via myriad platforms…and so are their advertisers, who are financing the games with an estimated $1 billion ad buy. I’m wondering if any local advertisers that signed on for the Olympics will see much return on their investment - ADWire will attempt to check in with them in the coming days and report back.
As far as the ads themselves: Meh. Some were good; others just OK. The Budweiser spot was kind of heavy-handed in its “I Am America” theme - perhaps to blunt the effect of their recent buyout by a Belgium brewery?? My 3-year-old son particularly liked this one from Coca-Cola (Cartoon Birds = toddler fascination):
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August 8th, 2008
I may be letting my dork show, but I admit I’m super-excited for the Olympics. I love the pageantry, the competition, the spirit. Even the unabashed commercialism and the politics of China don’t bother me when it comes to the Games. What DOES bother me is the London 2012 logo:
The logo is so bad that the British have been in almost full revolt about it since it was unveiled last year, with some groups claiming it has caused migraines and even seizures.
This year’s Beijing logo is OK:
LogoBlog.org posted some good information here from designers, who talk about the cultural influences in the design and calligraphy of Beijing’s logo.
The logos from other Games have always been met with a mix of criticism and praise. And they’re a huge part of the modern Olympics, with advertisers paying millions for the “rights” to use them on their merchandise in the hopes of being part of history. Is this Michael Phelps’ year to win more medals than any other athlete ever? Maybe. And if he does, you can bet Coca-Cola and McDonald’s will be using the Olympic logo for a long while promoting their “support” of such an incredible achievement.
As far as other logos, here are a few recent ones and the first logo from the modern Olympic era. Which do you prefer? I think I like Barcelona’s the best. (To see all of them, visit Chris Creamer’s SportsLogos.net site or the Unofficial 2008 Beijing Olympics Fan Blog.)
Sit back, relax and enjoy the Games - I know I will.
August 6th, 2008
Hard to believe that Back to School is here. For “Tweens” (kids 10 to 14), that means online search. If you’re advertising your back-to-school products, your ads must be online and your site must be optimized.
Tweens are most vocal in purchases of apparel, electronics, telecommunication services and products and other consumer packaged goods according to Performics, a market research firm (see their survey results here). More than half reported using the Internet to compare products and prices before suggesting back-to-school purchases to their parents.
In addition to online advertising, you would be well-served (regardless of your industry) to get your website optimized via process called “search engine optimization” or SEO. This process uses key words and other programming tactics to ensure a better ranking on the search engines.
Pet Loader, a client and local company that manufactures and sells portable dog stairs, told me last week they saw TRIPLE the traffic they did prior to doing SEO on their site.
I let our web gurus worry about how to actually do this; all I know is that it’s effective, essential in today’s marketplace and our clients swear by it. Here are two sites to get you started:
A prior ADWire post about how search engines work.
Google Ranking’s “Basics of SEO”
August 4th, 2008
I’m just going to step aside on this one and let the folks over at Brand Week explain the specifics behind the following “Top 10 Bright Ideas for 2008” in marketing:
- Dark Marketing (unidentifiable advertisers)
- Web Serial Branding (viral video serials)
- The Fake Action-Flick Pitch (LG’s “Scarlet” campaign…see below)
- Text Messaging (Motorola’s airport campaign)
- PetroMarketing (free gas!)
- Lickertising (mmm…ads you can taste)
- Break-out Store Brands (Safeway brands leaves home)
- Mob rule (StumbleUpon.com lets you vote up or down on ads)
- EBay as ROI (tracking brands in Joe Six-Pack land)
- Greenrating (Green marketing quantified)
Did you like any of these examples? What do you think are some of the best new advertising strategies you’ve seen in 2008?
As far as “Dark Marketing” tactics, I hate it when I realize the video I just shared with a dozen people was actually a plant by a company who wants my money….thereby shattering my romantic notions of creativity and open-source content. But that’s me.
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