As Facebook emerges as a publically traded company, CEO Mark Zuckerberg will need to learn how to balance the expectations of not only its users and advertisers but that of investors. Continue reading
Tag Archives: advertising
You’ve Been A Bad, Bad Ad!
Next month, the FDA will be celebrating the first birthday of their brain child, the Bad Ad Program…
Whaaaat? You mean you’ve never heard of the Bad Ad program? Well, we wouldn’t blame you. Since the program began in May of 2010 there have been over 239 complaints. Nope, not 239,000… but 239 total.
The basic premise of this program is “to educate healthcare providers about the role they can play in helping the agency make sure that prescription drug advertising and promotion is truthful and not misleading” (source: www.fda.gov).
Launched by the FDA’s Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising and Communication, it has commissioned a small secret police, whoops, I mean agency, which takes into account the various sorts of advertising violations. Continue reading
Stop. Now read the next two questions.
Who am I? And why am I here?
These are the questions that circled through my mind as I read Ad Age this morning, as has become my habit to do just about every morning.
I especially love the “Small Agency Diary” articles because most of the things they talk about are experiences we’ve all had in the marketing world. It’s like my pals in Ad Age land have been spending time right here in our office.
But all I could think about as I read Derek Walker’s blog post this morning, “Who are you and why are you here?” was how would I answer that question?
It’s such a simple thing. A straightforward and direct request. Who are you? And now that I start to think about it, Derek is right in his point. You go to so many advertisers and marketers’ websites, and you get no idea about who they really are. What is their perspective and their raison d’etre? What do they think is their most powerful offering?
For goodness sakes, give us a little personality! I mean, as marketers we’re supposed to build brands and deliver messages for our clients. If we can’t tell you who we are and why we’re so special, how could you ever trust us with your own company’s image?
So with all of this reflection I digress. I take a step back to the MOS website and take a fresh look at how we represent ourselves as a company, as individuals, as creatives. And again I ask, Who am I? And why am I here?
Finally: Facebook brings you instant ads
Did you update your status recently?
Pay attention to the ads in the right column. You may soon notice an uncanny relevance to your instant desires. No, it’s not the universe giving you a sign. It’s Facebook’s newest advertising platform that is currently in testing (you know, a small study group of only 6 million users or so).
So what’s the big idea? It’s Facebook’s version of intent-based advertising. It basically delivers real-time ads based on your wall posts and status updates.
Here’s how it works. Let’s say you’ve got the munchies and update your status to, “Could really go for some pizza right now! Who’s in?”
You could get an instant ad or a coupon from Domino’s, Papa John’s or Pizza Hut. Continue reading
Google’s Retaliation on Groupon?
One thing is certain; Google will always be in the news. Today Google is buzzing for a few reasons but one grabbing most headlines is co-founder Larry Page will be taking over as CEO. Eric Schmidt the current CEO is stepping down to a new role as Executive Chairman as he will oversee the company’s expansions abroad. Larry Page had already been the company’s CEO more than a decade ago. He led the company when they grew from two employees to 200, and now they have over 20,000 worldwide.
While this may garner a great deal of attention, Google was also seen in other headlines Continue reading
Must See – Funny Spoof on Death of Ad Agencies
Thanks to FITC for this clever but eerily relevant sci-fi scenario of the death of the last ad agency on earth. The thing is – they pretty much hit the nail on the head. Many “creative firms” are scared to actually get creative any more. And that, my friends, may be the death of them.
Why? Because consumers’ media habits and access to that media are changing rapidly. We’re not the same captive audience that we used to be. If you’re familiar with the acronyms TiVo and DVR, or you’ve ever been exposed to a YouTube video, then my point has been made.
Effective marketing today has got to be about not doing the same old stuff. It’s got to be about STANDING OUT. We’ve been saying it for a long, long time. Still not convinced? Watch this video! You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, it’ll become a part of you.
Why advertisers can’t afford not to consider digital advertising
So what’s the deal with digital? We all know, and by this point love, everything digital. Even if we don’t honestly know what the letters LCD stand for we know it’s a good thing. And when it comes to high definition, whether we’re fast forwarding through infomercials or yelling at a questionable sports call (trust me, the World Cup in HD is totally worth it every four years), as viewers we like what we see.
But consumers aren’t having ALL the fun. Why should advertisers be so excited about digital? Because digital signage advertising is one of the most effective and cost-efficient forms of advertising, way out performing the reach and results of television, online, print, and practically any other medium.
Why should advertisers take a hitch on the digital bandwagon? Studies found that consumers are three times more likely to successfully recall digital advertisements as compared to television, and four times more likely than television ads. Nearly two-thirds of consumers say that digital signage advertising catches their attention – the highest level reported across all media surveyed, including billboards, magazines, TV, the Internet, newspapers, radio, and mobile phone advertising.
If you’re looking for numbers, take these for a spin. It takes an average advertising investment of $21 to reach 1,000 people via television. So how does that compare to the ROI for digital? Continue reading
Why we’re throwing out the dirty “S” word
Busy is good in our industry! It’s certainly better than the alternative. We tend to like a faster pace – we like it when things are going on, and we like to have projects. Most of us would say that we even work better under the pressure of deadlines and crunch time. But what happens when you just have too many things in the queue and not enough days in the week to get them done? As they say, something’s gotta give.
Don’t think of it as sacrificing. I know that sacrifice is kind of a dirty word in our field. I mean, who really wants to sacrifice? The idea of a forfeit or a loss of ANYTHING is NOT appetizing. Our clients want to get everything, get it quickly, and for cheap. Now WE know that’s not happening. And we want to be able to deliver quality, quickly, and for every client at the same time. The idea of having to sacrifice one of these elements seems like suffering. So no, it’s not sacrificing. It’s more like… prioritizing.
Have you ever hear the old line: “Good, fast or cheap – pick two.” It’s a little bit hokey, but it’s so true. Continue reading
Want more business? Try an app for that.
How did the world function before cell phones? When wireless technology didn’t exist, people were tied down to a place and a time. Before constant access spoiled the world with instant gratification, communication required patience and effort. Prior to the consumer appeal of mobile applications for entertainment, function and general amusement, businesses struggled to find a more personal way to create client relationships. Then came the app.
Consider these numbers: 7 billion. This is the population of the world right now. And 4 billion. The number of people who owned a cell phone last year. Next is 680 million, which is the number of smartphones in the world in 2009. That’s 17 percent of all cell phones. Finally, the number that is most crucial to your company is 1 billion. This is the number of people who will own a smartphone in the next three years. Continue reading
All Email Campaigns Are Not Created Equal
E-mail. How can you make this unique marketing tool effective?
Pop Quiz: The most effective weapon in your email marketing arsenal is _______________? The answer is at the end of this article.
Why is it that people have this idea that “all new age marketing is created equal?” I had a client tell me she wants to do an email campaign to potential clients. I asked her why. The conversation we had sounded something like this:
Me: Why do you want to do an email campaign? Continue reading
