Marketing Evolution: Once More With Meaning

CMO Magazine, November 13, 2009 — There is no question that the chief marketing officer (CMO) role has been a crucible of corporate pressure since the job was first spawned in the mid-1990s. Marketing is the most visible expression of company strategy, customer satisfaction and corporate spending. With the accelerating changes in consumers’ media and buying habits, each of these areas is in flux. As a result, many CMOs are hired in or promoted up into the role and immediately assigned as “change agents.” The question is—Change what?

The Illusion of Brand Control†

Harvard Business Review, November 13, 2009 — You've probably heard by now that "your brand is no longer yours." The assertion's based on simple math. In the era of blogs, discussion boards, Facebook, Twitter, and other Web 2.0 tools, virtually everyone can get online and talk about your company and its offerings. As a result, the amount of information your marketing and PR departments can generate is only a small percentage of the total volume of content on the Internet about your firm.

IAB, Bain Unveil 'Roadmap' For Building Brands Online: Report Addresses Industry's Dysfunctions

MediaPost Publications, November 12, 2009 — Last year, the Interactive Advertising Bureau and Bain & Co. released the findings of a shocking study showing the commoditizing effects the burgeoning marketplace of online display advertising, and new secondary sales channels such as ad networks and exchanges were having on the value of online advertising inventory. Today, they will begin to fight back. In a meeting with nearly 100 top industry executives, including many of the largest brand marketers, the IAB and Bain will release the findings of a new report they believe will provide a "roadmap" to rebuilding the industry's perceptions about the brand-building value of online advertising.

Why Digital Agencies Are Indeed Ready to Lead†

They Understand the Technology, the Speed of Iteration and Analytics

Advertising Age, November 12, 2009 — Over the past 18 months, a great debate has consumed our industry: Are digital agencies poised to sit at the head of the advertising table? Depending on whom you ask and what you read, the answer seems to flip flop — with a majority of people still having reservations and making claims that digital agencies aren't ready to lead.

So why does the debate continue? Does offline or online really matter to an oblivious consumer who's only interested in "no-line" communications? Are we spending too much time focusing on who should lead and not enough asking: What's next?

Define Your Brand's Purpose, Not Just Its Promise

Wal-Mart, Charles Schwab returned to their roots to strike a recession-appropriate message.

Forbes, November 11, 2009 — Every brand makes a promise. But in a marketplace in which consumer confidence is low and budgetary vigilance is high, it's not just making a promise that separates one brand from another, but having a defining purpose.

The Last Campaign: How Experiences Are Becoming the New Advertising†

Red Bull, Virgin America, Uniqlo and Guinness Lead the Way

Advertising Age, November 11, 2009 — Is advertising dying? It's certainly fashionable to say so. Conventional wisdom holds that traditional media's grip on consumers continues to slip as they increasingly turn to the internet and their peers for entertainment and purchasing recommendations.

Burberry Looks Online for Ways to Gain Customers

New York Times, November 9, 2009 — Angela Ahrendts still remembers when she bought her first Burberry trench coat. She was 21 years old, had just finished her studies in Indiana and was looking for a smart but warm coat to wear for her first job at a small men’s wear firm in New York.

Those raincoats, a 95-year-old fashion icon, remain Burberry’s best-selling item, and Ms. Ahrendts — who now runs the company — is hoping to move the quintessentially British brand into the age of the Internet to attract a new generation of shoppers.

Comcast Play for NBC Universal Is a Bet on Future of Advertising†

Union Would Allow Experiments in DVR, Addressable Campaigns

Advertising Age, November 9, 2009 — Comcast Corp. is looking to take a 51% stake in NBC Universal, surely a sign of the durability of cable networks, since NBCU owns a bunch of top-tier ones. But there's more going on here: It's also a calculated move to seize the reins in shaping future TV-viewer behavior and a bid to assume the lead in figuring out how to advertise to the new-media consumer.

Flip's Quest in First Major Ad Push: Become a Lifestyle Brand†

Camcorder Maker Tries to 'Verb' Itself -- and Stave Off Smartphone Competition

Advertising Age, November 9, 2009 — Flip, the Cisco-owned maker of pocket-sized camcorders, wants to go mass, and it's hoping its first, multimillion-dollar ad campaign, launched today, will establish it as a lifestyle brand.

Marketer of the Year: Hyundai†

The Carmaker Won Handily in Our Reader Poll, Besting Walmart, McDonald's, Lego and Amazon

Advertising Age, November 9, 2009 — Consider the state of affairs when viewers tuned into the Super Bowl in February: Banks had failed, a stimulus package still hadn't been announced, and unemployment was surging toward 8%, up from 4.8% the year before. Escapism was the order of the day, and most advertisers played right along, with brands like Coke and Pepsi offering saccharine happy-happy joy-joy visions that jarred with the bleak reality.