Friday Night #Marketing News from Mediapost

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Food

At The CES: Reese's Intros Its Dime-sized Minis

by Aaron Baar

"When you think about it, there are Intel chips, and we have chocolate chips," said Jim St. John, vice president of research and development for Reese's, who added the product was the result of more than five years of research and development. With a crowd gathered, he then pulled away a fabric display made to look like a trunk. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Q&A: Cadillac Is Defining Luxury On Its Own Terms

by Karl Greenberg

The ads use the "New Standard of the World" tagline by Fallon, which replaced Bartle Bogle Hegarty, New York, as Cadillac AOR last year. Don Butler, VP of marketing for the GM luxury division, talks to Marketing Daily about the campaign and where Cadillac is going. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

Pantene Picks Actress To Stump For Brand

by Tanya Irwin

Shay Mitchell, known for her role as Emily Fields on ABC Family's "Pretty Little Liars," will appear in a new print campaign developed by Grey Worldwide. She joins a long list of Pantene spokespeople, including Stacy London, Kelly LeBrock, Kelly Ripa, Maria Menounos and Padma Lakshmi. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

After A Big November, December Disappoints

by Sarah Mahoney

Call it the Christmas that fizzled. When people stormed into stores in November, retailers thought they could count on that enthusiasm to last until the ball dropped, but shoppers had other ideas: December's sales numbers aren't as healthy as many had hoped. ...Read the whole story >>

Food

Atkins Expands Dieter Resources, Ad Campaign

by Karlene Lukovitz

Atkins Nutritionals, Inc.'s New Year's marketing resolutions call for continuing a free, home-delivered weight-loss kit, providing people with chef-created low-carb recipes and new online resources, and an expanded multimedia ad campaign featuring actress/brand spokesperson Courtney Thorne-Smith. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Traditional, Digital Back Ford's 'Focus Rally: America'

by Karl Greenberg

Ford's Jeff Eggen says, "Fiesta Movement was all about a highly social and socially networked group of people. Focus Rally is really a hybrid -- reality TV with lots of interactivity -- so this program has a lot more traditional media elements to support it." ...Read the whole story >>

Southwest Airlines Intros New Rewards Program

N.J. Nets To Host Evening Of Russian Culture

Chrysler Showing Its After Parts At Auto Show

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Does a Mermaid Really = Starbucks?

I don't think so.

And neither does Laura Ries.

From her blog this week:

Starbucks dumps “Coffee” and I think is likely to get burned

Change can be good and many times change can be welcomed. Change is so powerful a concept that the word itself put Obama in the White House.

But when it comes to branding, the best kind of change is usually no change at all. Sure, over the decades a brand needs subtle, almost unperceivable, changes to keep the brand current and fresh. But radical changes by well-known brands is most often a bad idea.

Just ask The Gap or Tropicana.

Today, Starbucks unveiled a new logo which drops its name “Starbucks” as well as the word it owns in the mind “Coffee.” What is left is a large green Mermaid.

Smart move? I think not.

Is the Mermaid the first thing you think of when you think of Starbucks? No.

Is a Mermaid a powerful visual for a coffee brand? No.

That’s why the Mermaid isn’t top of mind for Starbucks. It is a unique visual which is good, but it is not very powerful since it has no clear relation to the brand.

Powerful visuals like the golden arches for McDonald’s, the cowboy for Marlboro and the chili pepper for Chili’s all have clear connections to the brands and their positions.

Is the Mermaid simple? No.

Powerful visuals should also be very simple in design. Over the years, Starbucks has done a good job of making simplifying its Mermaid. But it is still far more complex than visuals like the Nike swoosh, the Mercedes tri-star or Apple’s apple.

But what is really troubling about the change is the explanation Chief Executive Howard Schultz gave: “Even though we have been and always will be a coffee company and retailer, it’s possible we’ll have other products with our name on it and no coffee in it.”

No coffee in it? Is that a good idea for Starbucks? Apparently one of the reasons Starbucks took the word “coffee” off the logo is that they want to launch stuff that has nothing to do with coffee. This is a fundamental marketing mistake. A strong brand is focused and owns a word or category in the mind.

The Starbucks brand was built on coffee and nobody knows that better than Howard Schultz. Seeing him so blatantly and arrogantly remove it from the logo is blasphemous.

And not because Starbucks shouldn’t launch non-coffee products. Starbucks today is big enough that it can and probably should be thinking of launching non-coffee products.

But not with the Starbucks name. They should think like Toyota and launch brands like Lexus, Prius and Scion.

Instead, Starbucks seems to be planning line-extensions that will dilute the brand in consumers’ minds. And nothing is worse that a watery cup of Joe.

Starbucks is also following the dangerous trend of removing names from logos and signs. While visuals are powerful, the reality is that they are much more powerful with the words attached. Remember when Prince changed his name to a symbol only? Bad idea. Other examples include Chili's restaurant using just a chili pepper to Shell gas stations using only the shell.

The combination of the visual with the name of the brand is more powerful than the visual alone. Companies should never give up the chance to hammer the name along with the image. Only on rare occasions, for simplicity and fashion reasons, should a brand use a visual only. For example, Nike’s swoosh on a shirt or Apple’s shinning apple on a laptop.

Conventional thinking suggests that words are really not necessary. A typical comment: “The Mermaid is visual shorthand for 'coffee' much like the swoosh is visual shorthand for sports apparel."

True. But what about the younger generation? Removing the brand name from a logotype makes it more difficult for kids growing up to learn what the visual stands for.

In some ways, it’s like saying a well-known brand doesn’t need to advertise because “everybody knows what the brand stands for.” But over time, memories decay and without constant reminders even a well-known brand will lose some of its identity.

Will dropping “Starbucks Coffee” from the logotype hurt the brand tomorrow?

Probably not. But marketing strategies are not designed for the short term. They’re designed for the long term.

And in the long term, the Starbucks brand is likely to get burned.

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Social Stuff

Two things I want to share with you this Friday morning....

1. A friend of mine here in Fort Wayne Indiana, Andrew Hoffman invited me to speak to a class he is teaching at nearly Huntington University. It is a really cool class, introducing a handful of college students to the world of Social Media, 2 hours a day for 2 weeks.

Andrew is a real professional. He is giving back to the college he graduated from by leading this J-Term class. His background is in the advertising world and yet he walked away from that world to take over as the Executive Director of Neighbor Link.

Andrew has tapped several folks to spend an hour of their time to speak to his students. I'll be there next Thursday with an interactive presentation I'm creating on Personal Branding.

One of the really cool things that Andrew is doing is putting the information from the class online with a Facebook page, and also a blog that I have been following. You are invited to interact with Andrew and his students on Twitter too.

Check it out here: http://friendstweetschange.wordpress.com/



2. The other "Social Stuff" that I want to share with you is a new project I started about a week ago. I created another blog, ScLoHo's Social Media Adventure which is updated weekdays at noon.

Why does the world need another blog talking about Social Media? Because most of the websites and blogs I have found are:

• Too Technical
• Too One Sided
• Trying to get Your Money by Selling you Something
• Written by People who are paid full time Social Media people
• Don't take you through some of the basics
• Really not that good

In 2004 I launched my first blog and forgot about it, then a year later started again, made plenty of mistakes and found some methods that are working.

My Social Media activities are not my main profession and sourse of income. Odds are that it is not yours either, but perhaps you have been asked to "Do that Social Media Thing" by your boss, your brother, your mother, or none of the above.

My perspective is based on my 30+ years in advertising, marketing, traditional media and sales.
I use Social Media to create my own unique identity in that world, or as some might say, my Personal Brand.

Social Media is a communication tool for me and quite frankly, I'm amazed by it and my own successes.

What ever your situation, you are invited to join me on ScLoHo's Social Media Adventure. Click here to go there, and you might want to scroll down to the introduction if you wonder what it's all about.

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Harvey's Take on Resolutions

I thought I was done posting end of year/new year posts, but then this arrived in my email:


Success in 2011 depends on your goals

By Harvey Mackay

So this is the year you're going to break away from the pack and set reasonable, achievable goals. And then, you're going to get through your whole list so you can reach even higher in 2012.

Call them New Year's resolutions, personal goals or just your to-do list. Or perhaps your goals are company-related, where you either supervise progress or report to a manager who expects results. Do you have enough incentive to keep moving past mid-January?

Whether personal or professional, goals need a clear basis and direction. Before you can actually set goals you need to consider these fundamentals:

• Know what you really want. A goal should be a response to a stated need. Do you need to improve your order processing to serve your customers? Drop a few pounds for your health? Learn a new skill to better enhance your resume? Goals need to be specific -- "being a better company" isn't enough. Perhaps you've heard the wisdom of Yogi Berra, who said, "If you don't know where you're going, you might wind up someplace else."
• Know your motivation. How will achieving this goal change your business, your life or your attitude? If you want to make more money, will that improve your situation? Or would some other reward, like a better schedule or less travel, be more fitting with what you hope to accomplish? Remember, health, wealth and happiness are not goals themselves, but by-products of goals achieved.
• Zero in. Focus on one or two areas where you can make real improvements, rather than shooting for a complete makeover. Any goal that is too overwhelming will soon become a good intention, and we know where those usually wind up. Allow plenty of time to make real, sustainable progress that you can build on for the next phase.
• Take risks. As I like to say, you'll never stub your toe if you walk backwards. But you won't move ahead either. Once you figure out where you want to be, find a path that is practical, manageable and bold enough to make a change. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was taking risks at age 12, when he called Bill Hewlett, co-founder of Hewlett-Packard, and asked if they would give him some parts.
• Involve those around you. Let your family and friends know that you are going back to school, taking on a new volunteer opportunity or training to run a half-marathon. Look for support wherever you can find it. At the office, make sure your staff is invested in facing new challenges and achieving results. Let them know that you value their input and perspectives.

Setting goals is all about taking charge of a situation. A company president who held a doctorate in psychology tried an experiment in his factory to determine the best way to help his employees reach their optimum performance as quickly as possible. He divided his newly hired unskilled workers into two groups to test his theory.

He set a difficult goal for the first group, to reach their production quota within twelve weeks. But after fourteen weeks, they had only achieved 66 percent of standard performance, well below their goal.

The second group was given weekly goals instead, with the same expectation after twelve weeks. Each week, as proficiency improved, the goal was set higher. At the end of fourteen weeks, the second group had achieved and exceeded the original goal of becoming skilled operators. Reasonable, measurable goals were the difference.

Occasionally, your goals will take you into uncharted territory. Be fearless! Consider the story of Henry Morton Stanley, the nineteenth-century British explorer. After fighting his way through an incredibly terrifying jungle, he was asked if he had been frightened. He answered, "I didn't think about it that way. I did not raise my head to see the whole. I saw only this poisonous snake in front of me that I had to kill to take the next step.

"Only after I had gotten through did I look back and see what I had been through. Had I taken a look at the whole thing, I would have been so scared that I would never have attempted this."

Mackay's Moral: Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.

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Thursday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

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Food and Beverages

PepsiCo Pulls Controversial Video Entry From Site

by Karlene Lukovitz

The video entry that has caused the stir, "Feed the Flock," shows a "pastor" succeeding in bringing in new church parishioners by serving Doritos and Pepsi MAX from the altar -- a scenario that was interpreted by some Catholics as mocking the religion's sacrament of Holy Eucharist (formerly Holy Communion). ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Ford Up, Toyota Down In New Perception Survey

by Karl Greenberg

Jeff Bartlett, online editor for autos at Consumer Reports, explains that an automaker's overall score is an aggregate of individual scores in each of the seven different categories. "One reason Ford is so strong is that its score is consistently high in all of those categories," he says, adding that Toyota led only two categories. ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

CES: Corning Seeks Name For Itself In Gorilla Glass

by Aaron Baar

Just as Intel made a name for itself as a computer component that people would look for when buying their PCs, Corning -- a brand known mostly for cookware products it no longer makes -- is looking to establish a name for itself as a necessary component for every consumer electronics product that requires glass. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Survey: Shoppers Reeled In Holiday Spending

by Tanya Irwin

"Shoppers are warily putting their toes back into the retail waters," Philip Herr tells Marketing Daily. "This year we are likely to see an explosion of shopping apps helping consumers to find the best price. And while this began last year with high end items in electronics and appliances, there is a strong likelihood this will spread to more common items." ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

New Lacoste Ads Push Gator Glamour

by Sarah Mahoney

Lacoste, the sportswear company best known for its preppy little alligator, is breaking a new "Unconventional Chic" campaign this spring, with models in sequins and tuxedos sporting its classic white polos. The campaign replaces the "Un Peu d'Air sur Terre" campaign, a concept that ran for 10 seasons. ...Read the whole story >>

Military

Army's Channel One Effort Tells Soldiers' Stories

by Karl Greenberg

The "Dream Strong" web series features an array of soldiers who have reached leading positions and have unusual skills. Channel One News, the teen-targeting news network, is owned by Alloy Media, which created the series. There will initially be four videos. ...Read the whole story >>

Profit, Sales Rise at Family Dollar

At CES: Sharp Promises Bigger TVs, EBook Service

NHL Says It Scores Goal With Winter Classic

Hyundai Unveils Blue Link At CES In Las Vegas

Starbucks Updates Logo, Dropping the Words

CES: Sony Places Heavy Bets On Internet TV, 3D

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Tech Predictions for 2011

Yesterday I got an email from Drew...

The trend report you don't want to miss

Posted: 05 Jan 2011 04:05 AM PST

Last year I told you about JWT's (J Walter Thompson) Top 12 Trends Report for 2010. It's by far the most comprehensive and helpful of any of the trend pieces we see this time of year.

Here's a quick video peek at their trends for 2011. (e-mail subscribers, click here to view)

Read more by clicking here and reading Drews Blog:

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New Ad Campaigns

Amy's back to work:

Dwyane Wade is a secret agent... and funny, too. Let's launch!

Christmas is over, but isn't this ad a little too precious? Be thankful the Train song used throughout is "Shake Up Christmas," rather than the overused "Hey, Soul Sister." Coca-Cola launched "Snow Globe," a global TV spot that reminds viewers how important quality time with family and friends can be -- especially during the holidays. The spot begins with employees working late when they'd rather be elsewhere, and two teenagers sitting on opposite ends of a park bench. The shot pans out to Santa Claus, who's sipping a Coke and looking inside a snow globe, watching the teenagers and employees inside. Santa decides to move things along at a faster pace... so he shakes the snow globe. Coca-Cola trucks leave the warehouse, a grocer falls into a shopping cart and is directed home by Santa, a dog finds a home and the teens on the park bench kiss. And Santa didn't even need to leave the North Pole. See the ad here, created by McCann Erickson Madrid.

Some people say hello, goodbye, or have a nice day. Then there are Alabama Crimson Tide fans. No matter what the situation -- happy, sad, awkward or casual -- the greeting is "Roll Tide." This phenomenon is the subject of ESPN's latest "It's Not Crazy, It's Sports" TV spot. Roll Tide is the ideal sentiment when giving a toast at a wedding, saying farewell to a loved one at a funeral, confronting the police officer that pulled you over, or having a manly hot tub conversation. Watch the ad here, created by Wieden+Kennedy New York.

T-Mobile launched a pair of TV ads, directed by Spike Lee, promoting its sponsorship of the NBA. "Outta Here" stars Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade and video he uploaded online. After getting locked inside his hotel bathroom, Wade uploads a cry for help: "Get me outta here." Basketballs fans across the country take this plea as Wade wanting a trade out of Miami. Heat fans are angry, but Rockets and Celtics fans rejoice. Steve Nash posts a follow-up video encouraging Wade to join the Phoenix Suns. By the time a housekeeper rescues Wade, he's already made the news. See it here. Two record producers create a remix of Charles Barkleys' memorable rants and raves in "Chuck's Remix." Barkley's remix is posted on YouTube, shared on Facebook and Twitter and played at parties. Wade video chats with Barkley, showing his successful dance hit, only to have Barkley shake his head in embarrassment. Watch it here, but I'm warning you: It's catchy. Publicis Seattle created the campaign.

Dwyane Wade can be funny, but it's his secret agent persona that's hooked me. Brand Jordan launched "The Escape," part two of the brand's "Dominate Another Day" campaign, starring Wade as Agent D3, whose mission is to to bring championship rings back to Miami. Wade is captured by the evil Zen Master, and dangerously close to meeting the fate narrowly escaped by Sean Connery in "Goldfinger:" death by industrial laser. As Wade escapes snakes, ninjas and explosions, his partner in crime, Specialist H (Kevin Hart) chastises Wade for being late to his own holiday party. I love the scene where Wade says "bring it" to the ninjas and Specialist H gets mad, thinking the remark is directed toward him. See the ad here, created by Wieden+Kennedy New York

The music makes this teaser ad for TaylorMade Golf Clubs work. Did I mention the brand borrows a "Sesame Street" song to show how its R11 driver differs from its competitors? Using the tune, "One of these things is not like the other," an assembly line of black drivers is shown. As the children's lyrics ask: "can you guess which thing is not like the other thing, before I finish this song," viewers finally see what driver stands out: the white-crowned R11 driver, available Feb. 4. Watch the ad here, created by NYCA.

Falling rose petals raise awareness for YWCA Canada's Rose campaign, an initiative that aims to end violence against women and girls. The campaign's name comes from the rose button created after 14 young women were murdered on December 6, 1989. As roses fall outside apartment and house windows, sobering copy appears: "Half of Canadian women will experience violence in their own homes. You have the power to stop it with a single rose." The Rose Campaign works year-round to reduce violence against women. See the ad here, created by Cossette, Toronto and produced by FamilyStyle.

The Art of Shaving, a luxury male grooming company, unveiled outdoor and print ads in 17 markets, including New York, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Charlotte, to boost its brand awareness. Each ad contains a different Art of Shaving brotherhood mantra, such as: "I will teach those less smooth than myself the path to smoothness" and "I will resist the urge to bring my shaving brush out at parties." See the ads here, here, here and here, created by BBDO New York.

Keeping with male grooming, Schick Hydro launched a TV and print campaign last year that used hits to men's faces to illustrate the sheer amount of hydration received with each shave. In "Splash," a boxer's glove turns to water when hitting his opponent's face; a woman's pillow liquefies when she socks her boyfriend in the face; and a soccer ball explodes when a player heads the ball. See it here. Print ads, seen here, here and here, follow suit with stills of a hydrated boxer, soccer player and kendo sword fighter. JWT created the campaign.

Random iPhone App of the week: Delta launched an iPhone app that allows customers to check in for flights, check their flight status, get terminal and gate info, review flight schedules, set a parking reminder and use eBoarding passes (in some cities). Fliers can also review their SkyMiles account balance. The app connects to Delta's in-flight Wi-Fi for free. AKQA created the app, available for free at the App Store.

Amy Corr is managing editor, online newsletters for MediaPost. She can be reached at amyc@mediapost.com.

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Goals for 2011

From SalesDog.com:

Setting Your 2011 Goals

by Jeremy Jacobs

Over the holiday period you will no doubt be receiving and reading missives telling you how to achieve your goals in 2011 or similar. Not to be confused with your purpose in life, goals are different. A popular method of deciding what and how your 2011 goals are going to work is doing them the SMART way, like so:

S stands for Specific: Your goal(s) must be specific. Putting it another way, they ought to highlight the end result that your want. Instead of "I want to be a top salesman", write something like," I want to increase my sales by 15% over the next 12 months".
M stands for Measurable: Will your goals be measurable? In the case of sales targets, the answer is clearly a "yes". Being a nicer person, kinder to animals and your close family members would be harder to measure.

A stands for Achievable: The next important factor to setting your goals is that they must be achievable. For example, a goals which says "I want to travel to all five continents this coming year" is fine if you're a millionaire, free of responsibilities but not for the rest of us who either have a family, a job, and so on. Even that objective is hard if you're afraid of flying!

R stands for Realistic: This leads into the next point. Are your goals realistic? Realistic goals are objectives that are not beyond your capability but do stretch you. Going from being an accounts clerk to an airline pilot in 4 years may be possible but highly unlikely. Choose goals that are within reach of your attainment.

T for Time-related: The final part for achieving goals is that they are time related. Putting it another way, it's not simply enough to state, "improve customer satisfaction by 20%," it's "improve customer satisfaction by 20% by January next year"..

Jeremy Jacobs is one of the UK's leading corporate presenters and event hosts. He speaks frequently to an eclectic client list on topics such as effective communication, cold calling and social media. For more information visit: www.JeremyJacobs.com.

If you found this information useful, check out a few of our previous newsletters here.

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Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

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Automotive

Automakers Win By A Knockout In 2010

by Karl Greenberg

Hard to believe after 2009, the year from hell for the auto industry, but it seems 2010 has finished up with most of the automakers looking like Manny Pacquiao after 12 rounds with Antonio Margarito, or Mayweather after 12 rounds with Shane Mosley -- victorious with nary a scratch. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

ANA: Multicultural Digital Investment Increasing

by Karlene Lukovitz

More than half (56%) of marketers responding to a recent online survey confirmed that their companies are increasing their investments in digital media platforms for multicultural marketing purposes, reports the Association of National Advertisers (ANA). ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

Ace Metrix Names Samsung's 'Wonder-full' Best Ad

by Tanya Irwin

"Wonder-full" garnered an Ace Score of 736 out of a possible 950, scoring a 759 in watchability and 677 in persuasion. The Samsung ad was also the top-scoring ad in first-quarter 2010 and the highest-scoring ad in the annual male, female and TV and appliances categories. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Survey Finds Upswing In The Way Men Dress

by Sarah Mahoney

When it comes to men, it's okay to judge a book by its cover: A new survey from Men's Wearhouse reports that 91% of Americans think that a man who dresses well seems more attractive than he really is, while 83% of women think a snazzy dresser is sexier than one with lots of dough. ...Read the whole story >>

Tourism

Big Apple Set To Draw 50 Million Visitors In '12

by Karl Greenberg

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said international visitors are especially important because "they spend 3.5 more than domestic visitors. We like tourists from across the Hudson [River], from Connecticut, from upstate, from anywhere -- but international tourists spent a lot more money here." ...Read the whole story >>

Food

Snickers PB Squared Set For Big Launch

by Karlene Lukovitz

The product's campaign, which will span TV, print and online advertising, in-store and consumer promotions and public relations, is tag-lined: "If you like peanut butter and chocolate, you'll love peanut butter and Snickers." ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

At CES: GM Intros OnStar Mirror For Every Vehicle

by Aaron Baar

OnStar's personal connection -- a voice at the other end of the button, as Chris Preuss put it -- is what sets the service apart from the many other connected services offered by other automakers. "The infotainment things [offered by others] are important, but, frankly, they're going to be commodities going forward," he said. "In this world of high-tech everything, we have the most complex thing available and that's a human being." ...Read the whole story >>

Macy's, Dollar General Expand, Add Jobs

Best Western Expands Mobile Travel Tools

U.S. Army 'Dream Strong' Effort Goes Online

Groups Ask FDA For Soda Health Warnings

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This is Wrong

First of all,

I disagree with the premise of this story, that branding is dead. Branding needs to be built into your marketing and advertising.

Next Thursday I'm going to be speaking to a class at Huntington University on the subject of Personal Branding. I'll be posting the presentation afterward.

In the meantime...

Branding in the Digital Age: How to Stop Wasting Money

Heads up: The age-old "sales funnel" metaphor—consumers begin their decision-making with a large number of options in mind and narrow their choices to an eventual sale—fails to capture the shifting nature of consumer engagement in the digital age, warns David C. Edelman in a recent article at the Harvard Business Review.

As a result, many companies could be wasting precious branding dollars, Edelman contends. "What has changed is when—at what touch points—[consumers] are most open to influence, and how you can interact with them at those points," he explains.

He cites an article in the McKinsey Quarterly that redefines the sales process in terms of the "consumer decision journey" (CDJ). Briefly, these are the steps in that journey:

Consider. Unlike in the days of the sales funnel, today's consumers often limit their considerations at this first stage, Edelman notes.

Evaluate. At this stage, consumers seek input from peers, reviewers, retailers—and the brand and its competitors. Be there to answer questions, he advises.

Buy. Increasingly, consumers put off a purchase decision until they're actually in a store, Edelman says. "Thus, point of purchase ... is an ever more powerful touch point."

Enjoy, advocate, bond. This is perhaps the biggest change from the sales-funnel model, Edelman contends. Post-sale behavior has taken on vastly new importance as the consumer interacts with the product and with new online touch points after a purchase.

The shift to a CDJ-driven strategy takes three steps, according to Edelman:

• Understand your consumers' decision journey.
• Determine which touch points are priorities and how to leverage them.
• Allocate resources accordingly.

The Po!nt: Put your money on interaction. To best serve today's consumers, companies need to spruce up their Internet presence and encourage more consumer feedback (chats, testimonials, brand pages)—before and after a purchase.

Source: Harvard Business Review.

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Say What?

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Your Opening Statement

When making a sales call, keep your opening statement short, understandable and credible.

Your goal is to start a dialogue rather than a one-sided discourse in which you preach about the features and benefits of your product or service. You establish who you are, why you're there, and why the prospect should be interested in what you have to say.

There are many ways to open the call, but the common objective of good openings is to lead the prospect to agree that you're allowed to ask questions.

Source: Marketing consultant Ted Barrows

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Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

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Restaurants

Dunkin' Donuts Unfurls New Coffee Campaign

by Karlene Lukovitz

Premised on the question and answer "What Are You Drinkin'? I'm Drinkin' Dunkin'," the campaign features "everyday Joes" -- that is, real Dunkin' fans -- who were chosen through open casting calls during November 2010. While hot coffee is the main thrust, one spot will focus on iced coffee. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

'Consumer Reports' Won't Recommend 3 Brands

by Karl Greenberg

Consumer Reports has some dour news for Ford's Edge and sibling Lincoln MKX. Same story for Chevrolet Tahoe. The brands all scored too low to get a "Recommended" rating from the magazine. For the February issue, the company tested six midsized, midsized luxury, and large luxury SUVs. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Staples: Workers Manage Love Via Technology

by Sarah Mahoney

The latest survey from Staples says that 60% of small-business owners admit that they spend more time holding their phones than they do the hands of their loved ones. But the good news is that the majority of them feel technology also gives them the freedom to go home more, and better equips them to juggle work and family. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Study: Hispanics Are Ideal Online Consumers

by Karl Greenberg

Regardless of whether marketing is in-language or not, if it's relevant it will have a more significant influence on Hispanics than non-Hispanics. "While non-Hispanics may tend to look at interactive advertising as intrusive, Hispanics seem to be appreciative of the brands that are trying to reach out to them," per the comScore study. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

Marcal Hosts Contest As Green Resolutions Grow

by Tanya Irwin

The Marcal Small Steps brand is based on the philosophy that small actions can make a major environmental impact, says MJ Jolda, senior vice president of marketing at Marcal Small Steps, who tells Marketing Daily: "It may seem insignificant, but even the everyday decision of choosing a recycled brand of toilet paper or paper towel is actually very important." ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

NPD: People Want Internet-Connected TVs

by Aaron Baar

"What we've seen is a large array of content become available for connected television," Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at NPD, tells Marketing Daily. "Even though more could be done to ease the set-up process, [Internet connected TV] isn't as big an ecosystem [challenge] as the one 3D TV faces." ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

Evian's 'Live Young' Takes Urban Turn For 2011

by Karlene Lukovitz

Rather than attempt to one-up those videos/commercials -- which are still generating views and viral action a year and a half after their debut (14 million views of the U.S. version and nearly 32.6 million of the international version to date) -- Evian continues to build on their popularity. ...Read the whole story >>

DeMet's Acquires TrueNorth From Frito-Lay

McDonald's Officially Rolls Out Oatmeal

Eastern Mountain Sports Partners With Observatory

Chase Bank, Pier 1 Reaffirm Agreement

Synovate, Duke Team Up For Shopper Insights

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Discrimination is Good for You

I read this last month and realized that it applies to all of your advertising and marketing efforts.

This is from FeverBee.com:

Who Are You Trying To Reach?

Do you know exactly who you're trying to reach? Do you know why you're trying to reach them? Most people don't.

Many community projects try to target everyone. That's a bad idea.

You need to focus your efforts on a specific group of people at the expense of others. The concentration of effort on the few yields results. You get the few. These are the founders of your community. They need extra time and attention. You need to build up positive relationships with this small group first.

To do this you need to know exactly who you're trying to reach.

• Are they male/female?
• How old are they?
• Where do they live?
• What do they do?
• What do they have in common?
• Why are they interested in the topic?
• Who are they trying to impress?
• Who impresses them?
• What are their biggest fears?
• What are their biggest hopes?
• What internet tools do they use most every day?
• What internet tools do they not use ever?

From this you should be able to build a list of real people who you want to participate in your community. If you randomly build a list of people, you're doing it wrong. If you can't build a list from the answers above, you've done it wrong.

You can broaden this group later, but when you're launching a community you need a pinpoint focus.

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Are you Really Prospecting?

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Plant the Seeds of Tomorrow

Some salespeople view prospecting as nothing more than lining up the next sale. That's a fallacy.

Prospecting is a process in which prospects make the decision to do business with you. Few of them act quickly today. Many won't make a decision until their backs are against the wall.

This means that no one ever knows when a "no" will become a "yes." It may happen when it's least expected. If you think longer term and stay close to customers, it will be a good tomorrow.

Source: Sales consultant John R. Graham, president of Graham Communications

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Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Click & read:

Restaurants

QSR Offerings Reflect 'Polarized' Consumer Base

by Karlene Lukovitz

The big question, of course -- particularly for QSRs and popular fast-casual chains -- is how calorie-count transparency will affect consumer behavior. If major chains have researched the expected impacts, they haven't shared the results, or for that matter commented to the media about how the new regulations might affect their sales or strategies. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Detroit Auto Show: News From Optimists

by Karl Greenberg

What madman would visit Detroit in the dead of winter of his own accord? Or in his own Accord? This year, you'd be mad not to. On Jan. 10, auto marketers, designers, executives, paparazzi, writers, buffs, hangers-on, pundits, the odd mugger and a mess of new and conceptual cars will converge on Detroit like pack ice in McMurdo Sound. ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

CEA Sees Gold In Them Thar Resolutions

by Aaron Baar

"We expect to see a lot more [purchases] in the next year," Colleen Lerro, a representative of the CEA, tells Marketing Daily. "With [the xBox 360 motion controller] Kinect and the other console products coming on the scene, we expect it to grow even further." ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Gold's Gym, 'Fitness' Effort Urges: 'You Can Do It'

by Tanya Irwin

Through a partnership in support of Fitness magazine's "You Can Do It!" program, readers will be able to receive an exclusive workout designed by a Gold's Gym celebrity trainer, a seven-day VIP membership to Gold's Gym and a personal fitness consultation from a personal trainer at the participating Gold's Gym of their choice. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

TaylorMade Debuts Driver 'Not Like The Other'

by Nina Lentini

"One Of These Things Is Not Like The Other" sings a children's chorus in an ad for TaylorMade's new white driver, and it may as well refer to the campaign itself, which is a stark departure from traditional, more somber ads for golf products. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Study: Americans Eager For 2011 Workouts

by Sarah Mahoney

While marketers can always count on vows to "exercise more" to be right up there with "lose weight" and "quit smoking" this time of year, there are signs that Americans really are looking to celebrate economic recovery with a little more time at the gym. ...Read the whole story >>

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ScLoHo's Social Media Adventure

Over the holidays, I contemplated starting another blog, this one based on Social Media.

So far, I designed, revised, redesigned and wrote the first 8 blog posts.

Weekdays at noon, a new post will magically appear.

Check it out here.

I welcome your feedback.

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Email Assumptions

So, you've decided to launch an email marketing campaign in 2011. Read this first:

Three Deadly Mistakes Email Marketers Make

In a post at the Email Marketing Reports blog, Mark Brownlow examines mistaken assumptions that can seriously damage the long-term success of an email program. Our basic beliefs about how our emails work aren't as self-evident as we'd like to believe, Brownlow notes; in some ways, we operate in the dark. "And all the while revenues are melting away silently, like sand in an egg timer."

Brownlow offers examples of beliefs that might be holding you back. Among them:

You read more into the customer relationship than actually exists. "Unfortunately," Brownlow says, "the word 'relationship' conjures up images of long-term loyalty and selflessness. It seduces us into assuming a level of devotion that simply doesn't exist among email subscribers." If you need proof, he argues, compare the open/response rates of the last 10 emails sent to customers with those sent to your family and friends.

You believe subscribers use email just like you do. "The email marketing 'community' is, in general, a high-tech community with busy email accounts," says Brownlow. "So it's easy to imagine our subscribers are the same. But they are not." A study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project suggests that a third of US email users don't check their email on a daily basis, he notes.

You forget that subscribers also receive messages from your competitors. That 20% holiday discount sounds spectacular when you compare it to your previous offers—but it won't stand out in a subscriber's inbox if everyone else has the same idea. "[T]he value of what you send depends on the absolute quality of your content/offer AND on its quality relative to what others might be sending," he notes.

The Po!nt: Step back and shine a light. Take the time to consider how unfounded assumptions can drive bad decisions in the whirlwind of ongoing email campaigns.

Source: Email Marketing Reports.

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5 Seconds

Despite what the following bit of advice says, you really only have 5 seconds.

Those 5 seconds then earn you another 5 seconds, and then another, until your minute is up..

Daily Sales Tip: Communicating Your Point in 60 Seconds or Less

What is YOUR 60 second sound bite?

Know your objective. Begin by seeing the end. What do you want? What is the outcome you desire? Have a single, clear-cut objective.

Know your audience. Know what that person or group wants from you. How can you get a favorable reaction and connect with the listener?

Formulate the right approach. Objective and approach are essential to each other. Have a single, clear-cut approach based on your objective and your knowledge of the audience. A simple one-sentence approach.

The Hook. This is the grabber, headline or attention-getter. A hook can be serious, humorous or dramatic, but it must capture attention.

The Subject. The subject must contain all or any part of the who, what, where, when, why and how.

The Close. If you don't ask, you don't get. You must ask for what you want.
Example: Call CoachAnovick now for a FREE 20-minute consultation.

Stop: You have just read a sixty-second message. Any questions?

Source: Sales coach Paul Anovick

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Everything is Marketing

Another example from Seth Godin:

The appearance of impropriety

Marketing is actually what other people are saying about you.

Like it or not, true or not, what other people say is what the public tends to believe. Hence an imperative to be intentional about how we're seen.

It may be true that the effluent from your factory is organic, biodegradable and not harmful to the river. But if it is brown and smelly and coming out of an open pipe, your neighbors might draw their own conclusions.

I know you washed your hands just before you walked into the examination room, but if you wash them again, right here in front of me, all doubts go away.

Yes, Ms. Congressperson, I know that lobbyist is your good friend, but perhaps someone else should host you on vacation.

Your brother-in-law may very well be the most qualified person on the planet to do this project for us, but perhaps (unfair as it might be) it would be better marketing to hire the second-most-qualified person instead.

Sneaking around is a bad strategy. You will get caught. Ironically, it's also a bad strategy to not sneak around but appear to be.

You will never keep people from talking. But you can take actions to influence the content of what they say.

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Customer Service is Marketing too

From Drew:

How Disney says "I'm sorry"

It's inevitable...we're going to make a mistake or disappoint a customer. And while Love Story might have told us that "love means never having to say you're sorry" I'm pretty sure that if we really want to create a love affair with our customers -- we do on occasion, have to apologize.

The brilliant marketers at Disney know that for many, a trip to one of their resorts is a once in a lifetime event for a family. So if they mess up, they'd better apologize in a big way.

Like most hotels, check in at Disney's Boardwalk is 4 pm. But our room wasn't ready until around 6 pm. Oops.

How did Disney handle their error? First, we got a $200 credit on our room tab. And then, there was a knock at the door and room service presented us with this beautiful (and delicious) 8" white chocolate Mickey and four tuxedo'd chocolate covered strawberries.

Do you suppose that right after we finally checked in, someone scrambled to figure out how to make things right with us? Of course not. Disney had a plan in place and all the cast member had to do was put it into action.

How about you -- what's your white chocolate Mickey? Don't wait until after you've disappointed a customer to figure out how to apologize.

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