Nike’s Loyalty to Tiger Woods Pays Off

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Ad Age posted an article recently about Tiger Woods and his effect on Nike.  Everyone knows the story of his scandal, so no need to go into that, but they decided to take another approach.  Some of his top sponsorship deals for companies, Gatorade, AT&T, and Accenture felt his scandal would be disastrous for their image.  They decided to cut bait and drop Tiger from as a sponsor.  Others such as Nike, EA Sports, NetJets, and TLC Laser Eye Centers have decided to keep him on board but limiting his role for the time being.

Some questioned whether keeping him on board as a sponsor would hurt Continue reading →

Google Goggles: Seeing into the Future of Marketing

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google goggles, marketingAlmost a year ago Google launched Google Goggles, an app for mobile users that allows them to instantly find more information about something simply by taking a picture of it. People have been using this device to look up information on text, landmarks, books, artwork, logos, and contact information.

It is a very interesting concept but now Google is taking it a step further. Google is performing their own marketing experiment with 5 brands, Buick, Delta Airlines, Diageo, Disney and T-Mobile. Continue reading →

Awesomely Bad Commercials

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We’ve all seen them before, commercials that are so bad they actually catch your attention.  It may not be the best strategy or even a good one, but for some they are doing the best with what they’ve got.  It seems that lawyers, mortgage companies, and local doctors have a knack for the worst commercials out there.  At Asylum.com they’ve posted their top 10 worst lawyer commercials but the one for Greenstein & Milbauer, LLP seems to be at the top of the list.  Their practice targets victims from accidents and they figure what better way to represent this than an animated squirrel.   He seems to be popular enough that they’ve used him in several of their other commercials as well.

Let us know what you think.  What are some of the worst commercials that you’ve seen?

“There’s a Soldier in All of Us”

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call of dutyCall of Duty: Black Ops is one of the hottest video games coming out on the market just before the holiday season.  Wal-Mart, GameStop and other suppliers are opening at midnight tonight when the game will first be released to the public in the US. The game will be released for PS3, Xbox, and Wii and is widely known for the online play.

I’m not sure if you were watching any of the commercials during the football games yesterday but the commercial for Call of Duty: Black Ops was quite unique. This may have been the first ever Continue reading →

How your Common Sense is hurting your Marketing Sense

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Little Caesars Slogan MarketingThere was a great article posted this week on Ad Age by Al Ries that really hits a point most people do not understand about marketing.  That point is the difference between common sense and marketing sense.  While both are crucial to business operations, you cannot run your operation without one or the other.

Everyone remembers the “Pizza, Pizza” slogan of the 90’s used by Little Caesars, but what most people don’t know is where they are today.  They are virtually invisible.  Ranking as the second largest pizza chain in 1994, they are now sitting in 4th well behind the current leaders Pizza Hut, Domino’s, and Papa John’s.

What happened to Little Caesars is simple. Continue reading →

Are you lovin’ McDonald’s 24-year promo campaign?

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mcdonalds monopolyFor 24 years now, McDonald’s has used one of the most popular promotional games that will always seem to get people excited.  This genius marketing idea lures people in with the chance of winning cash prizes, cars, vacations, gift certificates, as well as free food.  It is extremely rare to see a promotional contest last this many years but I have a feeling this one is here to stay.  Over the past few years the prizes have been getting larger and larger with the top prize being $1 million.  This has only added to the hype as you can see advertisements about the monopoly game on TV, billboards, and hear them on the radio.

Students at the University of Michigan have gotten involved as they created their own blog about their McDonald’s Monopoly experience.  They have vowed to keep track of their game pieces and statistics based on the winning percentages of each item they purchase.  They want to find out if the more expensive items have a greater chance of winning as well as testing McDonald’s claim that one in four wins.  Bargaineering, a personal finance blog, has even posted tips on how to win with the McDonald’s Monopoly game.

What is most exciting for the players is the vast amount of prizes offered by the game.  McDonald’s has teamed up with EA Sports, Wal-Mart, Ford, Beaches Resorts, and several other companies to offer a wide variety of prizes in the U.S.  The contest ends today, so if you’re looking to get that $1 Million top prize good luck.  Although, the guys at University of Michigan say the cheapest item you can get a game piece on is a 24 cent medium water…happy hunting.

Conan’s back: and surfing the social wave

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i'm with coco, conan o'brienMost of you know the story about Conan and how he was kicked off The Tonight Show only months after he became the host.  What you may or may not know is the new Conan.  He will be hosting his own show on TBS starting in early November, but he has already captivated an audience of millions before his show has hit their airwaves.  From viral marketing videos to his own blimp he has caught the attention of many and his most recent stunt may be the biggest of them all.

The Live Coco Cam was up and running for 24 consecutive hours last Monday and Tuesday.  The webcam was placed in the corner of a stairwell at their office to give viewers a “behind-the-scenes” experience.   Whether it was the dancing taco or the binge eating contest or any other random skit performed by the interns at the office, it sure was an experience.  The best part was that users were able to post comments on the site and staff members would read them and come onto the webcam and answer certain ones.  It really became an experience for everyone involved.

Before Conan was kicked off The Tonight Show he did little to interact and engage with his fans online.  But now he has a Facebook page and a Twitter account which has only added fuel to his fire.  He has taken his marketing efforts to a whole new level and with over 1.75 million followers on Twitter, people are listening.

SEO Copywriting: 5 guidelines to help your ranking

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SEO, search rankingOne thing you learn quick in our industry is that designing and developing a beautiful site is one thing. But if it doesn’t rank anywhere in the search engines and no one can find it, it doesn’t do you or anyone else any good.

That’s why we explain to our clients that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is such a crucial part of promoting their site.

Yes, they can direct clients to the site, or even pay for online advertising, but one of the most rewarding and effective leads is from an organic search.

I know there’s a lot of talk about SEO, but even a lot of our colleagues in the marketing industry are still novices in the practice (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

Here’s a few tips from a really helpful article by Brian Clark on CopyBlogger with 5 guidelines for SEO copywriting success. (Read full article)

  1. Title. Identify target keywords and include them in the title of your content. “The closer to the front of the title your keywords are, the better,” Clark notes.
  2. Meta Description. Though it’s debatable whether keywords in your meta description influence rank, Clark observes that SEO copywriting is also about the presentation of your content in a search engine. “Try to keep the meta description under 165 characters, so the full description is visible in the search result,” he advises.
  3. Content. To make search engines happy, Clark says, use unique and frequently updated content (at least 300 words), “tightly on-topic and centered on the subject matter of the desired keyword phrases.”
  4. Keyword Frequency. Keyword frequency is the number of times your targeted keywords appear on the page. Keyword repetition affects ranking, but don’t over-do it, Clark cautions, or Google might penalize your page.
  5. Page Links. Link to relevant content early in the body copy. Other suggestions: Link to relevant pages every 120 words or so; link to relevant interior pages (not just home pages); and link using naturally relevant anchor text.

(Another Awesome) Video of the Week: Gillette – A Mayne and his razor

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OK, so we have two favorite videos this week. Hey, it’s our blog, we can post two videos if we want to! And this one has actually killed all the competition in views this week, topping the Ad Age charts with 2.5 million views.

I know we bashed Gillette’s last campaign – no need to remind anyone of “Mullet Nation” – but props for getting your stuff together this time, Gillette!

It’s the company’s newest viral – a spot featuring ESPN analyst Kenny Mayne. Mayne peps himself up with a little self-talk before the show, and although it’s a little on the dry side, we like it. This is one of a series of spots featuring other ESPN personalities in Gillette’s newest campaign. Instead of airing on ESPN itself, on Visible Measures’  distribution advice, the ads appeared on guy-oriented video sites like Break.com and DailyMotion’s Mag.ma.