A Hotel in Theory, With an Image in Fact

New York Times, August 31, 2008 — LAST year, advertisements began appearing in magazines depicting sand, surf and, in one case, a model wearing a mysterious silver amulet.

“A lot of people, when they saw the campaign, thought it wasn’t selling anything,” said Alan Becker, the developer of Nizuc, a resort just south of Cancún, Mexico, where rooms will start at about $800 a night.

But his goal in the campaign was to get the Nizuc name in circulation. The point is to establish a strong brand before the hotel opens for business next year.

Is a Coke Promotion Betraying Its Loyalists?

New York Times, August 31, 2008 — Could Coca-Cola’s long-running Internet loyalty program actually be eroding customer loyalty?

Some members of the My Coke Rewards program complain that they have amassed hundreds of bottle-cap codes in exchange for points, only to have some of the expensive items that they have been saving for become suddenly unavailable.

Lines and Bubbles and Bars, Oh My! New Ways to Sift Data

New York Times, August 31, 2008 — PEOPLE share their videos on YouTube and their photos at Flickr. Now they can share more technical types of displays: graphs, charts and other visuals they create to help them analyze data buried in spreadsheets, tables or text. At an experimental Web site, Many Eyes, (www.many-eyes.com), users can upload the data they want to visualize, then try sophisticated tools to generate interactive displays.

Crisis Counseling for the Marketing Industry†

Brandweek, August 29, 2008 — With the average CMO lasting just 23 months and with three quarters of marketing departments in the throes of reorganization, the marketing industry is in a crisis state. It's universally acknowledged that the impact of cultural singularities like media fragmentation and the Internet have changed the marketing environment forever. But most companies, distracted by experiments with new marketing techniques and tactics, have failed to evolve their own internal structure, culture and capabilities.

Introducing the Twiller

New York Times, August 29, 2008 — You might remember the novel in its earlier form; it had a cover, and many pages, forethought of plot, editors and agents weighing in, and, oh yes, it generally had sentences and punctuation. And, finally, some poor suckers had to take the time out of their busy days to actually read it.

Who has time for all those niceties? They’re so first half of 2008.

Introducing the Twiller.

All Shopping Is Local

New York Times, August 28, 2008 — IS it possible for a global corporation to become a local favorite? Origins is about to find out with its new concept store here where shoppers are encouraged to linger over a mug of steaming tea, get a free chair massage and appreciate a kind of slow beauty experience a world apart from a quick jaunt at a department-store counter.

Mid-Tier Retailers Try New Brands On for Size

Chains Look to Stand Out In Crowded Marketplace

Washington Post, August 28, 2008 — This back-to-school season will go down as the Battle of the Brands. Kohl's launched six new lines of clothing this summer with a star-studded advertising campaign featuring celebrities from Lenny Kravitz to Hayden Panettiere. JCPenney introduced another half-dozen labels, the department store's biggest crop of new brands, with looks including urban rock and all-American. And Dillard's is chasing soccer moms with a line designed by Sheryl Crow that hit stores this month.

The New Standard In Advertising In A Social Media World

MediaPost Publications, August 28, 2008 — What started out in 2003 as simple community-based Web sites and tools for sharing information with friends, social media has grown into a phenomenon of epic proportions with the monumental success of sites such as YouTube, Bebo, Flickr, Digg and a myriad of others.

Earlier this month, ComScore reported that over half a billion people worldwide hang out on social networks. That translates into two-thirds of all Internet users. And half of those, about 250 million people, call Facebook and MySpace home.

Why You Won't See Michael Phelps on the Wheaties Box†

Kellogg Signs Swimmer Before Big G's Traditional Unveiling

Advertising Age, August 28, 2008 — In a PR masterstroke, Kellogg Co. managed to spoil an every-four-year tradition for General Mills — the unveiling of Olympians to grace the Wheaties box. By the time Big G made its big announcement today, Kellogg had already one-upped the news by revealing that it signed the biggest of them all, Michael Phelps

TV's Future Looks Like Web's Present†

Forrester says targeted ads and a portal-like menu of options are coming to your set

Adweek, August 27, 2008 — TV advertising is poised to change dramatically over the next decade, embracing the kind of targeting and user control already common on the Web, according to a new report by Forrester Research. Forrester lays out a decade-long evolution that will ultimately result in most programming delivered on-demand with targeted ad messages based on location and behavior, along with community functions.

What's New at MySpace

With Facebook surging, cofounders Chris DeWolfe and Tom Anderson have gone back to their roots -- music, pop culture, and a proven cash-flow ad model -- to spur a next phase of growth. Will that be en

Fast Company, August 27, 2008 — Chris Dewolfe, the lanky, shaggily hip CEO of Myspace, is holding his last meeting of the day from a prone position, a collection of long limbs stacked on a tiny red love seat. The early evening powwow, taking place in the cramped office of his senior communications director, is interrupted when I come crashing in to say good-bye.

Lame and Lamer: 10 Dumbest Viral Marketing Campaigns

You can't force anything to 'go viral' on the Internet, but that didn't stop these 10 companies from giving it a big, dumb try. Guess who topped the list.

PC World, August 26, 2008 — Sure, it looks easy enough. Post a video of yourself wiggling your butt on Wii Fit, dancing your way across the globe, or practicing your Jedi Knight moves, and--presto! You're the next Web sensation, swept along by the viral nature of the Internet.

Marketers Reducing Ad Budgets in Tough Economic Times

Marketing Charts, August 26, 2008 — Marketers from a cross-section of categories and industries are feeling the pinch of budget belt-tightening - over half (53%) expect ad budgets to be reduced over the next six month, for example - according to a survey from the Association of National Advertisers (ANA). Moreover, early 9 in 10 (87%) of the 100 people surveyed are already being challenged with identifying cost savings or reductions with current marketing and advertising efforts, the study found.

Coke's New Design Direction

Five years ago, Coca-Cola's design chief was told: "We need to do more with design. Go figure it out." Now his labors are bearing fruit

BusinessWeek, August 25, 2008 — When David Butler joined Coca-Cola (KO) almost five years ago, he was given, as he tells it, "the Post-it Note mandate: We need to do more with design. Go figure it out." Butler, who had come from a gig as director of brand strategy at the interactive marketing and consulting firm Sapient, had soon written up a 30-page manifesto laying out a design strategy for the company. But if Butler, who's now vice-president for design, has made an impact at the beverage giant, it's not because of some heady proclamation. Instead it's because he has learned the most effective way to implement design strategy at a company as large and complex as Coca-Cola: avoid the word "design" as much as possible.

Designing the iPhone of diapers

Innovation isn't just for Google and Apple. How Kimberly-Clark gave birth to a lucrative new product.

FORTUNE, August 25, 2008 — In a windowless room at Kimberly-Clark's research offices in Neenah, Wis., a mother hoists her baby girl onto a table painted on its side to look like a school bus. Photos of puppies and kittens decorate the walls, and a mobile with Sesame Street characters hangs overhead.

Interpublic Unveils New Lab Initiative, Backs Platform That Links Brands With Social Networks

MediaPost Publications, August 25, 2008 — Interpublic has quietly struck a deal to begin utilizing a promising new online marketing service that could finally enable Madison Avenue to unleash the power of social networks on behalf of their clients' brands. The deal, which is being officially announced today, involves a partnership between Interpublic's Emerging Media Lab and SocialVibe, a company that provides incentives for members of social networks to interact and endorse consumer brands.

More Marketers Want to Get to Know You†

CRM Surges as Brands Demand Measurable Results

Advertising Age, August 25, 2008 — The days of putting millions of dollars against something without being able to track its effectiveness are soon to be over. Enter CRM. As the U.S. economy worsens and consumers rein in discretionary spending, brands are ramping up their customer-relationship-management efforts, aiming to grab some of that money by building one-to-one relationships with consumers.

P&G Takes Laundry Brands In New Directions†

Dry Cleaning, Youth-Oriented Products and Tim Gunn Figure in Latest Initiatives

Advertising Age, August 25, 2008 — Procter & Gamble Co.'s Tide is branching into dry cleaning, fashion and more as it looks to innovate in new areas amid an economic downturn and changing consumer demands regarding laundry. Tide has launched a three-store test of a dry cleaner under its brand name in Kansas City, Mo. The test includes construction of a new company-owned store and partnership in two other stores with a local dry cleaner, GreenEarth Cleaning, which uses a dry-cleaning solvent it says is environmentally safer than traditional chemicals.

The Newest Brands? Open for Business

Retailers Have Switched Gears, Marketing Their Stores and Labels and Strengthening Bonds With Shoppers

CMO Strategy by AdAge, August 25, 2008 — Many marketers are rapidly becoming more concerned with how retailers think. They want to know their concerns, objectives, equities and images and how they go about creating bonds with shoppers. That's because today's retailers are evolving far beyond their historical role as simple points of distribution for selling national brands.

United Airlines Goes Too Far†

Garfield's Ad Review: Lush Animation Won't Make Anyone Rhapsodize About Flying

Advertising Age, August 25, 2008 — When there is a notable air disaster, by terms of the airlines' media contracts, airline advertising typically goes dark. This is for obvious reasons. No marketer wants to spend money reminding the audience of, for example, sudden fiery death.

There is a valuable lesson in that. At certain moments, advertising — no matter how cunningly crafted — is incapable of sending its intended message. At certain moments, it is capable only of triggering associations with the larger story in the public mind.

Marketers get to us in more ways

USA Today, August 24, 2008 — It's marketing mayhem out there. It's subtle. It's subversive. And it's murky, says journalist Rob Walker, who writes the weekly "Consumed" column for The New York Times Magazine. And murky is a stealthy way to sell, he reveals in his new book, Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are.

More Than a Name: Japanese Super-brands Diversify

Brandchannel.com, August 22, 2008 — Before addressing these questions, let’s consider the way in which Japanese super-brands evolved. After World War II, Japan reinvented itself and developed into a global economic powerhouse. Some believe a primary reason for this growth was the Japanese keiretsu system. Essentially, keiretsu were major families of affiliated corporations that had ties to a key bank, which both controlled and provided security to the companies.

Study: Marketers' Budgets Likely To Plunge Further

MediaPost Publications, August 22, 2008 — A new survey finds that 53% of major marketers expect their ad budgets will be reduced within the next six months because of the spiraling economy. And 87% say they have already made cutbacks in their marketing and ad plans.

The poll, fielded by the Association of National Advertisers, also finds that while the majority of marketers (53%) expect additional cuts to be modest--ranging from 1% to 10%--27% expect cutbacks to be more substantial, in the 11% to 20% range. A smaller group--about 10% of the respondents--are expecting that their budgets will be gutted, with decreases of 30% or more.

The Challenges of Innovation

Indifference, hostility, and isolation are among the major obstacles to a healthy innovation environment

BusinessWeek, August 22, 2008 — In most companies, just about all the cards are stacked against the nurturing of innovation, especially the kinds of new ideas and disruptive innovations that generally lead to major changes in the marketplace and within the business.

Following are some of the behaviors I have observed in companies throughout the years that have convinced me how difficult it is to create an environment in which innovation can flourish.

P&G Taps Bloggers, Moms for Unconventional Product Launch†

Word-of-Mouth, Buzz Push for Crest Weekly

Advertising Age, August 21, 2008 — Procter & Gamble Co. is trying something decidedly new with toothpaste: launching a product designed to be used once a week. The idea, of course, isn't to get people to brush less often. Rather, Crest Weekly Clean Intensive Cleaning Paste, which is set to hit stores by mid-September, is billed as a weekly addition to people's daily tooth brushing. The goal is to provide that "just-from-the-dentist," smooth, clean feeling, as P&G and some bloggers who've gotten sneak previews of the product have put it.

Retailing icon Mickey Drexler doubles down

J.Crew's CEO says that this is the worst retail environment he's seen in 40 years in the business. His strategy? Take J.Crew upscale and launch a new brand called Madewell.

FORTUNE, August 21, 2008 — Is now the time for a retailer to go upscale? The guru behind clothier J. Crew thinks that's the right strategy. J. Crew is relatively small - its entire retail square footage would fit into the space of just 13 Sam's Clubs - but CEO Mickey Drexler, the man who made Gap (GPS, Fortune 500) into a pop-culture phenomenon and reinvented retailing icon J.Crew, is closely watched in his industry.

The Ad Changes With the Shopper In Front of It†

Some Digital Screens Could Adjust Messages Based on Features

Wall Street Journal, August 21, 2008 — Ad targeting is coming to a store near you.

In the latest effort to tailor ads to specific consumers, marketers are starting to personalize in-store promotions based on products the consumer recently picked off a shelf or purchased — and in the near future, based on what the shopper looks like.

The Second Coming of Khaki

New York Times, August 20, 2008 — ON Monday afternoon, as the ballyhooed new designs of Gap’s fall collection by Patrick Robinson began appearing at its store on Fifth Avenue and 54th Street, a line of customers stretched well around the corner — at Abercrombie & Fitch, that is, two blocks away.Fashion magazines have heralded the recent arrival of Mr. Robinson at Gap in reverential tones (he is actually called a “megabrand messiah” in the September issue of Elle), and the windows announce in big block letters that a “New Shape” is in store.

How to Avoid Eco-Fatigue†

Not Only Marketers: Media Also Needs to Do Its Part to Keep Consumers From Burning out

Advertising Age, August 19, 2008 — People are getting sick. A wave of green fatigue, eco-exhaustion and environmental anxiety is spreading among consumers. Overwhelmed by choices, disgusted by corporate hype and living with the fear their efforts will never be enough, people are tuning out, say the experts.

ING Direct Expands its 'Banking Barista' Model†

Brandweek, August 19, 2008 — Call them banking baristas. ING Direct is using coffee cafes to peddle its virtual banking experience. Modeled after its high-tech cafes in Chicago and St. Cloud, Minn., the financial institution is opening a new midtown New York location as well as a Honolulu operation by year's end. The Chicago experience lures pedestrians inside with seven 32-inch LCD screens hanging in the window. The brand's signature lion and orange ball flash on the units along with "pursuit of happiness" and a convertible car that drives from one screen to the next.

Retailers 'Sell' to Young Virtually†

Kohl's, Sears Build Brands As Children Clothe Their Avatars Online

Wall Street Journal, August 19, 2008 — Retailer Kohl's Corp. this month launched a new line of apparel, but the plaid skirts and printed T-shirts won't be sold in its 957 stores. Instead, it's selling them on Stardoll.com, a virtual community for teens and tweens where kids can fork over "Stardollars" — purchased online at a nominal sum — to buy apparel for their online characters.

Social Networks Get Down to Business

Think of them as digital water coolers—surrounded by thousands of workers engaged in serious business conversations.

eMarketer, August 18, 2008 — Do business and socializing mix?

Apparently so. As the number of business users of social networks continues to increase, advertising expenditures will rise, too. In the US this year, advertisers will spend $40 million to reach a business audience on online social networks, and that is just the beginning. According to eMarketer projections, that ad spending will reach $210 million in 2012.

The Social Network as a Career Safety Net

New York Times, August 14, 2008 — If you have avoided social-networking sites like LinkedIn and Facebook with the excuse that they are the domain of desperate job hunters or attention-seeking teenagers, it’s time to reconsider.

In a world of economic instability and corporate upheaval, savvy professionals like the technology consultant Josh So epitomize the benefits of brushing up your online image and keeping it polished.

Woman to Woman, Online

New York Times, August 14, 2008 — Heather Armstrong’s wickedly funny blog about motherhood, Dooce, is more than just an outlet for the creativity and frustrations of a modern mother. The site, chock full of advertising, is a moneymaking machine — so much so that Ms. Armstrong and her husband have both quit their regular jobs.

Toyota's New Ads Accentuate The Positive

Marketing Daily, August 12, 2008 — Toyota has launched a new TV, print and online campaign that promotes the brand as the future of green, safe and humane mobility.

What's the Future of Brand Journalism? Collision Content†

How to Balance Consumer-Generated Content With Brand Content

Advertising Age, August 12, 2008 — There is no denying the radical shift from companies and brands controlling their messages to consumers controlling them. From blogs to YouTube to social networking, consumers have a bigger, louder voice than ever. And they're being heard.

InBev, the Only Way to Bring Back Bud Is By Being Fearless†

Budweiser Soared When Its Owners and Agency Took Chances. It Can Happen Again

Advertising Age, August 11, 2008 — As un-American as this is going to sound, maybe the best thing that could have happened to the would-be King of Beers' parent company is to be acquired by a Belgian-Brazilian multi-/mega-brewer that, despite honeymoon promises to the contrary, should indeed turn its marketing upside down.

Marketers Love Conversation, Unless the Consumer Starts It†

Listening Gets You More Than Complaints -- You Get Positive Brand Association and Word of Mouth

Advertising Age, August 11, 2008 — If the consumer voice is so important these days, why are brand feedback, or "contact us," forms so get-out-of-my-face unfriendly?

I dare you to find a feedback form that winks even a quasi-friendly smile. And if you find one that allows consumers to truly communicate in their native voices — complete with links, photos, audio clips or videos — I'll eat my just-published book.

What Obama Can Teach You About Millennial Marketing†

Consistent Mass Branding Works -- but Can Backfire With Other Demographics

Advertising Age, August 11, 2008 — Baby boomers and Gen Xers declared mass marketing dead long ago. We live in a world of fragmented media surrounded by cynical consumers who can spot and block an ad message from a mile away. But what Gen Xers and boomers may not realize is that the unabashed embrace of select brands by millennials, from technology to beverages to fashion, has made this decade a true golden era of marketing for those who know what they're doing. And when it comes to marketing, the Barack Obama campaign knows what it's doing.

Learning from the Olympics

From GE to Nestlé to watchmaker Omega, companies use the Games to test-drive new ideas—and strut their stuff

BusinessWeek, August 7, 2008 — When U.S. Women's soccer defender Heather Mitts hits the field for the Olympics, she'll rely on more than her gear, teammates, and fans for support. Mitts suffered a torn ligament last year and had to sit out the World Cup in September. But she's back for the Beijing Games. And her confidence will no doubt be boosted by the knowledge that doctors are nearby, ready to scan her knee at the first signs of stress. They'll be using a compact ultrasound machine, the LOGIQ i from General Electric Healthcare (GE). The 12-pound device can produce detailed images of even the tiniest tears in her ligament—every bit as sharp as those from the 800-pound machines found in hospitals.

It's part of GE's strategy of using the Olympics to show off its latest innovations.

Myspace, the Sequel

With Facebook surging, cofounders Chris DeWolfe and Tom Anderson have gone back to their roots -- music, pop culture, and a proven cash-flow ad model -- to spur a next phase of growth. Will that be en

Fast Company, August 7, 2008 — Chris Dewolfe, the lanky, shaggily hip CEO of Myspace, is holding his last meeting of the day from a prone position, a collection of long limbs stacked on a tiny red love seat. The early evening powwow, taking place in the cramped office of his senior communications director, is interrupted when I come crashing in to say good-bye.

DeWolfe can be forgiven for putting his feet up. Along with cofounder and MySpace president Tom Anderson, he has lived through a lot of long days lately — about four-and-a-half years' worth since the site first launched

Sprint Puts Positive Spin on Losses

New York Times, August 7, 2008 — Sprint Nextel, the troubled No. 3 wireless carrier, lost nearly a million customers in the second quarter. But the company says it lost some of them on purpose.

Meanwhile its chief rivals, AT&T and Verizon Wireless, respectively gained 1.3 million and 1.5 million new wireless customers. As customers tighten their spending during rough economic times and when nearly nine out of every 10 Americans already own a cellphone, winning customers from a competitor is the only way to grow quickly. And at that task, analysts say, Sprint is struggling.

Who's Most Likely to Buy Your Brand?†

Nielsen Connect CEO Jon Mandel Aims to Find Out

Advertising Age, August 6, 2008 — When he was one of the industry's top media-buying executives, Jon Mandel needed the equivalent of a rifle to target consumers, but all he had was a bazooka. Now he's gone from pressing the industry for better data to measure the effectiveness of commercials to building the rifle himself. As CEO of Nielsen Connect, he's charged with finding a way to move the industry away from traditional demographic-based media plans in favor of those that more directly influence consumer behavior.

Keeping Up Nintendo's Momentum†

As Wii Products Leave Pipeline, Iwata Looks to Services, New Gamers for Growth

Wall Street Journal, August 4, 2008 — After overseeing several years of rapid growth at Nintendo Co., President Satoru Iwata faces new challenges: how to keep players of the company's videogames interested, and how to cultivate a new wave of customers.

Under the 48-year-old Mr. Iwata, Nintendo has already redefined videogames and widened their appeal beyond the typical young male player who favors fast, action-packed games. Its DS portable game device, launched in November 2004, has attracted young women and an older audience with a touch-sensitive screen players can write on and simpler games, such as the brain-training quiz game Brain Age and the virtual-pet game Nintendogs. The Wii videogame console, released two years later, allows users to wield a controller as they would a tennis... continue reading

Targeted-Ad Initiative Is Crucial for MySpace†

Questions Multiply On Site's Potential to Turn a Big Profit

Wall Street Journal, August 4, 2008 — When News Corp. reports its fiscal 2008 earnings Tuesday, investors will scrutinize the company's plans to generate more advertising revenue from the enormous amount of traffic on its MySpace social-networking Web site.

One initiative that could be critical to MySpace's success, according to media buyers and industry analysts, is a system that lets marketers aim their ads at particular groups of users. As part of this "hypertargeting" system, MySpace has analyzed the profiles of its users to gauge their interests and then categorized them into more than 1,000 "buckets," including rodeo watchers, scrapbook enthusiasts and "Dancing With the Stars" viewers.

AmEx's Hip Cards to End†

Niche Offerings Fail to Generate Enough Demand

Wall Street Journal, August 2, 2008 — American Express Co. is pulling the plug on a much-hyped line of credit cards that were aimed at attracting young and affluent customers in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.

The company, which has been weighed down by rising delinquencies and a slowdown in consumer spending, is also discontinuing three other niche cards that were aimed at engaged couples, newlyweds and avid golf fans.

Expanding in Athletic Gear in a Tough Economy

New York Times, August 2, 2008 — AS far back as his days as a University of Maryland running back, Kevin A. Plank figured there had to be something better than sweat-soaked athletic wear. In 1994, after earning a business degree, he began making moisture-wicking T-shirts in his basement, and has built his company, Under Armour, into one of the most recognizable athletic brands.

Now Mr. Plank, 35, is expanding into athletic shoes and going up against the giants Nike and Reebok. In May, the company introduced its first line of performance training footwear.

Whole Foods Looks for a Fresh Image in Lean Times

New York Times, August 2, 2008 — Shawn Hebb may have one of America’s toughest jobs: convincing people that Whole Foods Market can be an economical place to shop.

This week, leading five customers through a store here, he breezed past the triple cream goat cheese, $39.99 a pound, and the fresh tuna, $19.99 a pound, to focus on the merits of beans, chicken thighs and frozen fish.

Then he held up a $1.50 package of tofu. “It looks gross but it’s delicious,” he said.