ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom

The New ScLoHo Website

2011-10-03T06:05:00.000-04:00

On Sunday October 2, 2011, I launched a new website, Scott Howard aka ScLoHo at http://www.scotthoward.me/ .

While I set up domain redirects for the 4 separate blog sites, like this one, you will most likely need to resubscribe to the RSS and newsletter feeds on the new site.

Why the move? Here's the answer = http://www.scotthoward.me/2011/10/03/welcome-to-the-new-scloho/

:)

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-30T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Apparel

Adidas Finds Basketball Game Must Go On

by Aaron Baar

With the NBA season already delayed (and unlikely to start anytime soon) thanks to a labor dispute, Adidas is prepping a new marketing campaign featuring last year's league MVP Derrick Rose as it launches his signature shoe, the adiZero Rose 2. Plans for the shoe's debut were made well in advance of the current lockout. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Neiman Marcus Preps Foursquare Challenge

by Tanya Irwin

Neiman Marcus will hide 15 Nancy Gonzalez clutches (which retail for about $1,400) in secret locations throughout its stores nationwide between noon and 4 p.m. Participants will engage in a hunt for the clutches by unlocking a message when they check into Neiman Marcus stores on Foursquare. ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

'Got Milk?' Goes Peanuts For Halloween

by Karlene Lukovitz

A seasonal "Got Milk?" campaign from the national Milk Processors Education Program (MilkPEP) is bringing Charlie Brown, Lucy, Snoopy and Schroeder together in a print ad for the first time in 15 years. The campaign continues recent years' efforts to make chocolate milk "the official drink of Halloween." ...Read the whole story >>

Online Ad Revenue Is Breaking Records

by Karl Greenberg

Someone's making Googles of money in the ad business this year. Online ad revenues in the first half of 2011 more than doubled versus the period in 2010, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau. The firm, whose report on first-half ad revenue was prepared with Pricewaterhouse Coopers, said revenue from online marketing efforts rose 23.2% to a record $14.9 billion in the first half. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Chrysler's Fiat Brand Ties Into SEMA

by Karl Greenberg

Chrysler's Fiat brand is heading to Las Vegas. The division is promoting the 500 at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) annual convention as an after-market accessorizing machine for Chrysler's Mopar. ...Read the whole story >>

Copses Fills Post At GM: VP Customer Experience

Yoplait, Betsey Johnson Team Up In NYC

QSRs' Discounting Intensifies

MediaVest, Draft FCB Join Vibrant Ride Bikes

Equifax Partners With Atlanta Falcons

T-Mobile Renovating Stores

The Danger of Generic

2011-09-30T12:00:00.000-04:00

With technology evolving it should be easy for you to create different campaigns for different clients....

Here's an example why from MarketingProfs.com:

Don't Introduce Yourself to a Customer You've Already Met

How is an existing customer supposed to feel when you send a form letter inviting her to sample your product or service and become a new customer? According to Allison DeFord, mistakes like this unnecessarily alienate otherwise happy customers—and might even send them into the arms of competitor who can remember their name.

Your best defense is a two-pronged offense that combines meticulous database management with a solid content strategy. Writing at the FELT blog, DeFord recommends components like these:

Random letters of appreciation. Send a note of thanks—perhaps once each year—to let customers know you value their loyalty.
Acknowledgement of milestones. When you celebrate a customer's birthday, or the anniversary of his first purchase, it reminds him that he matters to you.
Handwritten notes of congratulation. Supply everyone in your company with high-quality note cards, advises DeFord, and encourage them to send handwritten notes that laud customers' accomplishments and promotions.
Exclusive customer-only offers and news. Giving customers a special discount or a pre-launch sneak-peak is a great way to make them feel special.
User forums and online communities. A private space for discussion and interaction is beneficial to customers—and enables you to take notes on their concerns and interests.

The Po!nt: Treating an existing customer like a potential customer might turn her into a former customer. So make sure she knows you know exactly who she is.

Source: FELT.

Email Tips

2011-09-30T06:00:00.001-04:00

Excellent Advice from Jill:

How to Write a Highly Effective Subject Line
By Jill Konrath

If you're like most sellers, you don't pay a lot of attention to the subject lines. They're an afterthought. No big deal, right?

Totally wrong. Your subject line is the most important part of your message. If it's not a good one, your email gets trashed in a nanosecond. In fact, research by ExactTarget (my email newsletter service) show that the average person spends only 2.7 seconds on a message before deciding if they'll delete it, forward it or read it.

Just 2.7 seconds. That's all the time you have to capture a readers attention. That's why your subject line is so darn critical.

First, let's talk about what you don't put in a subject line. In order to avoid auto-deletes, it's imperative for you to:

Avoid salesy verbiage. Get rid of words like excited, hot new product, free offer or special pricing.

Avoid info on your company. No one is interested in your new product announcements or company updates except you.

Avoid capital letters. Just the first word should be capped. Otherwise it seems like a headline, not a personal message.

Now, let's talk about what works in your prospecting emails. Here are several options that have proven effective with today's crazy-busy prospects.

Use a referral. If someone has referred you to this person, put that in your subject line. They'll want to know why. For example, you might write: Terry Jones said to get in touch.

Ask a quick question. If your prospect feels it's simple and relevant, they'll take a look. Your subject line might read: Quick question re: new client acquisition challenges.

Tempt with ideas or information. My prospects are always interested in subject lines like this: Idea to reduce your sales cycle time or How XYZ company increased sales to Fortune 500 companies by 127%.

Mention a trigger event. If something is happening within the company or in their greater business environment that's relevant to your offering, bring that up. For example, if you read about a recent merger, you might write: Impact of XYZ merger on (insert relevant business issue you address.)

Get the picture? To work, your subject lines must focus on something your prospect cares about. If you do that, they'll keep reading.

Here's a major caveat though. When they start reading your message, it needs to deliver exactly what you promised in your subject line.

If you move into salesy mode or talk about your company, you'll trigger your prospect's auto-delete reaction. They can't control it. And you've lost the opportunity to open the conversation.

Hopefully by now you understand just how critical those simple little subject lines are to your sales success. I'd suggest you sit down right now and create 10 new ones you can use in the upcoming weeks.

Finally, start your experiment. See if you can tell which subject lines are most effective with your prospects. Then create variations off the same theme. You'll immediately see the difference in your sale success.

Jill Konrath, author of SNAP Selling and Selling to Big Companies, helps sellers get more prospects in their pipeline, speed up sales cycles and land bigger contracts. She's a frequent speaker at sales conferences. For more fresh sales strategies that work with crazy-busy prospects, visit www.jillkonrath.com.

New Ad Campaigns

2011-09-29T12:00:00.000-04:00

Amy shares:

Vagina monologues. Weird science. Let's launch!

Really, what IS that unintelligible line in Elton John's "Rocket Man," that I've been singing incorrectly for years? A ride in a 2012 Volkswagen Passat will answer my question, not Google. In the first of two new spots, a hodgepodge of amateur singers belt out "Rocket Man" lyrics while showering, riding an elevator or making coffee. The song is butchered as people interpret the lyrics differently: musty motor home and cheap cologne are two possibilities: I always thought the line ended with "ever known," so I'm just as bad as the folks in the ad. It's not until a couple riding in a 2012 Passat, with a Fender sound system that the answer becomes clear: "burning out his fuse up here alone." Watch it here. Two friends take a 13-hour nonstop road trip, listening to Spanish 101 tapes the entire time. Needless to say, they're now fluent and the Passat gets good gas mileage. See it here. Deutsch LA created the campaign.

Xerox is back with two TV ads for its "Ready for Real Business" campaign, highlighting how brands hire Xerox to handle business -- which allows them to handle real business. Michelin Man has little time to worry about accounts receivable numbers when he is busy fighting a gas pump with multiple nozzles for arms. Take it away, Xerox. Watch it here. A man on a Virgin America flight was looking to do some business in the bathroom but encountered a different business instead: a call center managed by an in-flight team. He's quickly removed and forced to wait for another bathroom. See it here. Y&R created the ads.

Fire down below! Science World launched "Beach Time," the latest ad in its "We Can Explain" campaign. This is your go-to source for strange-but-true facts. Did you know that bellybutton lint makes great kindling? One poor sunbather learned the hard way when he awoke on the beach to see smoke emerging from his bellybutton. He blows at the smoke, starting a fire in his belly, forcing him to think fast and flop atop the sand for relief. Watch the ad here, created by Rethink, Vancouver and directed by Wayne Craig of Holiday Films.

"Dragons aren't the only monsters," closes a chilling ad for ECPAT-USA (End Child Prostitution and Trafficking). The 60-second PSA begins with a young girl reading a book under a blanket. The story begins with a girl falling in love with a prince, who sweeps her off her feet and takes her to live in his castle. The story then takes a horrific turn with the young girl describing abuse, rape and being held in captivity. A disturbing statistic: roughly 100,000 American children are at risk of being sold into the sex trade each year, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Watch "Princess" here, created by JWT New York.

Dragon speech recognition software launched a trio of TV spots highlighting the product's ease of use. Just talk, no need to type. A young boy, writing a report on Blackbeard, decides the pirate isn't scary enough and embellishes a smidge. The updated Blackbeard has no eyes, an eggbeater for a hand and steals children. The last bit hits too close to home, prompting the boy to yell, "delete, delete." See it here. A man writes a sensual scene in his romance novel while he's ironing and the kids are running through the house in the next ad, seen here. A woman pitches her soap products to spas worldwide, hoping to play off the scents of the city. When she reaches New York, however, she realizes that the scent of hot garbage is not something one wants to lather up with. Watch it here. FORGE created the campaign and media buying was handled in-house.

Honda TV ads have a new voiceover. Gone is Kevin Spacey, replaced by actor Jason Bateman. When I first watched the ad, I hardly recognized Bateman's voice, though. His debut ad promotes the Honda Accord. In it, Bateman describes the lessons learned from the first Honda Accord made, along with strides in racecars and private airplanes. Information from these realms is implemented in the latest Honda Accord. Watch "Through It All-5 Star" here, created by RPA.

Think of this as the Vagina Monologues: 2.0. Or, if your vagina blogged. The Colony produced a 2-minute Web film for Johnson & Johnson China called "Gyno." The ad is voiced by a woman's vagina. CG animation quickly lets that cat out the bag, with a voiceover offering further confirmation. "At times I am your charm, at other times, your wickedness. I can make you proud or embarrassed. At times I am tender, sweet, at times I am wild." The film drives viewers to a microsite, translated as "little v," where female consumers can submit stories about women's issues. See the film here, created by Ogilvy Raynet, Beijing.

I am a huge fan of "Top Chef." That being said, I'm 100% convinced that season 5 favorite Fabio Viviani has a faux Italian accent and speaks better English than I do. Fabio stars in an ad for Domino's new line of Artisan Pizzas: Spinach & Feta, Italian Sausage & Pepper Trio and Tuscan Salami & Roasted Veggie. The ad plays off Fabio's too-cute accent and takes viewers through a set of multiple takes, as Fabio fudges his lines. Cue the shot of an actual Domino's chef, who's unconvinced that Fabio's charm will sell pizza. See the ad here, created by CP+B.

Random iPhone App of the week: Get your motor running: next week is Advertising Week in NYC. Deutsch updated its Advertising Week app from last year, providing real-time event updates, customized scheduling, local info and directions. This year, look for a new social media capability where users can tweet, post to Facebook and check-in with foursquare, all from within the app. Download it for free from the App Store.

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

Closing Time

2011-09-29T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip: Salespeople Need to be Great at Closing

Actually, this is true, but not in the sense most people think.

A sale is not a sale until it is brought to a conclusion or closed. Good salespeople know that. Successful salespeople know that closing the sale is not a tactic to trick or maneuver a buyer into a decision. When buyers feel manipulated, they may later cancel the order they felt pressured to place.

Great salespeople know that the best conclusion is getting the buyer to say yes, then following through to see that the buyer is satisfied enough to continue to order again, or to make a referral to someone else who'll buy.

Selling is just finding out what the person wants -- that's the first step. The second step is to help them get it. That's closing the sale -- satisfying the buyer's want.

To close a sale a salesperson must first invest the time to understand exactly what the buyer wants. Second, the salesperson must show how his or her product or service meets that want. If the salesperson really understands the buyer and makes recommendations based on the want, the buyer will close himself or herself as soon as the connection between the want and the product or service is understood.

The close simply becomes pointing out the desired outcome to the buyer. A close is not trying to wrestle with the buyer and pressure him or her into making a purchase he or she may regret later.

Source: Sales author/speaker Terry L. Mayfield

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-28T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & read:

Conference

J&J VP At OMMA: Brands Must Still Think Like People

by Karl Greenberg

The media business may be getting more and more automated, with algorithms determining everything from media mix to creative, but Kim Kadlec, speaking at the OMMA Global conference on Tuesday morning, said that ultimately, some very human factors determine how successful a brand is or isn't -- even in digital realms. And a lot of that has to do with the lost art of decorum. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Halloween Happenings At 10-Year High

by Sarah Mahoney

Seven in 10 Americans, or 69.6%, will celebrate, up from 63.8% in last year's survey. Spending is also expected to rise, with the average person ponying up $72.31 on decorations, costumes and candy, up from $66.28 last year. Those in the Northeast are most likely to observe the day, and those in the South the least. ...Read the whole story >>

Sports

Get'cher Free-Range, Organic Chicken Salad Sammy

by Karl Greenberg

The new eateries at Madison Square Garden cleave -- at least thematically -- to the traditional idea of stadium food as one-hand friendly, with a focus on burgers, dogs and sandwiches, but they eschew the commoditized nature of such food, by redefining for haute cuisine things like burgers and dogs. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Deloitte: Holiday Shoppers May Defy Economy

by Sarah Mahoney

A new holiday spending forecast from Deloitte predicts a 2.5 to 3% gain this holiday season, with November through January retail sales expected to reach between $873 and $877 billion. Last year, sales grew 5.9%. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

7-Eleven Offers CofFREE Day, Facebook Game

by Tanya Irwin

The promotion targets everyone who likes a "fresh, piping-hot cup of coffee," says Nancy Smith, 7-Eleven VP of marketing and guest experience. "It's an opportunity to feature our coffee as well as say 'thank you' to our customers," Smith tells Marketing Daily. "We'd like to build this program to become as almost as big as our Slurpee giveaway on 7-Eleven Day (July 11)." ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

Against IPhone 5, Android Must Emphasize Speed

by Aaron Baar

Now that it looks like the release of a new Apple iPhone is imminent (the company has invited the press to its headquarters next week to "talk iPhone," according to published reports), it may be time for the makers of Android phones to look for an angle to compete. One possible solution: speed. ...Read the whole story >>

September Looking Good ... For Auto Sales

Hyatt In Sarasota Goes Local

Citi, American Airlines Join For Elite Credit Card

John Hancock Extends Ad Campaign

A Few Secrets

2011-09-28T12:00:00.000-04:00

This article from Mediapost is talking about teens, but I think most of it applies to all of us:

Unite To Ignite

Teens want to unite to ignite. They want to change the world. Teens want brands they support to be a part of the solution to solving the world's problems. They want corporations to do more than give money to a cause; they want them to make 'doing good' a part of their daily business.

Teens will not support a cause-marketing program that is a wolf (marketing) in sheep's clothing (cause marketing).

How do you build your brand and change the world? Here's what teens told us they want -- the top 9 list. Why 9? Because top 10 lists are getting boring (see #5 below).

1. Be authentic. Repeat: Be authentic. No gimmicks.
2. Engage them with more than 'stuff' and self-interest.
3. Be transparent. They want to know what charity you are supporting and the impact they and you are making. They don't want percentages (i.e., 2% of profits); they want real numbers.
4. Do not use cause marketing to fix a bad or broken product. This strategy will backfire.
5. Don't bore them. Contest fatigue is setting in. They love to vote, but too many lame voting campaigns are out there. This goes back to being transparent; they want to know that their votes count.
6. Keep it simple.
7. Be relevant. Ignite a movement around an issue that is important to them. Some of their hot buttons: Gender equality, clean water, combating child sex trade, ensuring environmental sustainability, ending poverty and hunger, universal education, attacking HIV/AIDS and other diseases, violence and bullying, health and fitness, animal welfare, and saving children.
8. Understand them and what motivates them. Here's just one example that will show that you need to do more than kitchen research to really understand what motivates them: Lulu Cerone, the teen founder of LemonAID Warriors, tells us: "I was motivated by the effectiveness of President Obama's grassroots movement during his 2008 election. At nine years old, I was a campaign volunteer. After the election, his online campaign continued to reach out to us volunteers and encourage community service. I took that seriously. When the earthquake in Haiti hit, I used what I learned about grassroots motivation to reach out to my friends and family and watched my little classroom lemonade stand spread across the country to raise $4,000 in two weeks. I decided to keep motivating my community and look for issues that could benefit from our work." Would you have learned this by asking your daughter or niece?
9. Educate people and move them to action (emotion).

Who does it right? One of my favorites that keeps getting better and hits all the points listed above:

From TOMS website -- it's on every page: "With every pair purchased, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One."

It's a movement that is about people making everyday choices that improve the lives of children.

TOMS makes shoes. Shoes are needed to protect children's health. TOMS gives children shoes. It's simple, it's their core business and it changes the world.

Their story creates conversations. One Day without Shoes (I love this video) -- on April 5, 2011, TOMS encouraged people to go without (shoes). It was the #1 Twitter trending topic and the #4 most-searched term on Google. They walk the walk and people walk with them.

Do you have a cause-marketing campaign? Is there a campaign that you like or don't like? Rate them; take the nine points listed above and see how the campaign scores. Can you check all the boxes above? More than five? Fewer? Please share your scores/thoughts via comments below.

Denise Restauri is founder and CEO of the tween-teen girl media company, AllyKatzz.

Why My Business Card says Consultant

2011-09-28T06:00:00.000-04:00

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Diagnose Before You Prescribe

Think about the last purchase you made where you felt you had a positive experience with the salesperson. Did the salesperson introduce themselves and immediately tell you what they thought you needed? Or did they ask you questions to better understand your situation and accurately diagnose your needs?

Here is a good way to test yourself to see if you understand your customer's real problems. Think of a specific opportunity you are working on and name two or three challenges that your prospect wants your capabilities to help them resolve. In most cases, this is the easy part.

Now comes the hard part. Ask yourself, "What bad thing will continue to happen if they don't do business with us?" It could be that their revenue won't grow, they will lose market share, miss a goal, etc. Obviously, it varies based on product or service.

But if you can't answer the question, chances are your prospect can't either.

The basic principle here is to diagnose before you prescribe. When you can answer the question, "What bad thing will continue to happen if they don t do business with us? , you are ready to provide your prospect with a recommended solution. Challenge yourself to answer that question for your clients. They will reward you with their business.

Source: Nick Maslanka, a Regional Sales Executive for Sales Performance International

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-27T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Food

Cheech & Chong Hype 'Magic' (Fiber One) Brownies

by Karlene Lukovitz

In a perhaps-inevitable latest iteration of marketers' use of '60s and '70s culture to woo Baby Boomers to food products with digestive and other health-oriented benefits, General Mills has launched videos featuring Cheech & Chong promoting its new Fiber One 90 Calorie Brownies.< ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Q&A: Under Armour Woos Gen Y Women

by Sarah Mahoney

It's no secret that Under Armour is gunning for Nike, nor that it considers women to be one of its primary growth markets. But as the companypreps its first-ever marketing campaign just for women, it's also looking to broaden its demographic reach -- launching the Under Armour Challenge this week, a gauntlet-style competition on campuses. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

Energizer Bunny Rocks Apple's IAd Network

by Aaron Baar

"People's music tastes vary. But one thing we hope most people will agree with: whatever you're listening to, when you mix in the Energizer Bunny beats, the unstoppable energy and positive attitude amplifies the fun," Serge Traylor, brand manager for energizer, tells Marketing Daily. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Chrysler Lets Customers Track Production, Delivery

by Karl Greenberg

Chrysler is launching a program one typically associates with either very high-end cars, custom-production programs for vehicles like Corvette, niche vehicles with a certain cachet like Mini, or brands with a very passionate and particular owner base. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

Sharpie Invites Celebs, Fans To 'Ink It Pink'

by Tanya Irwin

"While woman are a primary purchaser, that's only one part of the story as to why Sharpie got involved with City of Hope," Sally Grimes, Sharpie global vice president of marketing, tells Marketing Daily. "On a more personal level, breast cancer is a disease that touches so many lives, including people within our own company." ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Ford Brings Real People To New Sync Web Site

by Karl Greenberg

Ford is hoping a new website will help people "get" Sync, its multifarious voice-activated, in-vehicle connectivity system. The site is meant both to give owners a resource for the platform and to give people at the lower end of the purchase funnel a nudge toward Ford and Lincoln vehicles. ...Read the whole story >>

Verizon, NFL Partnership Continues, App Enhanced

by Mark Walsh

As the second season for Verizon's NFL Mobile app gets underway, both sides say the partnership has gotten off to a strong start, with the app drawing 4.5 million downloads and a mostly positive response from fans. But Verizon isn't cashing in just yet. ...Read the whole story >>

Chevrolet Celebrates 100th In Korea

Jay-Z To Christen Barclays Center In 2012

NADA Elects Underrineri As Chairman

Credit Suisse Launches Global Ad Campaign

Don Shula Launches Burger Chain

Report Spotlights 'Junk Food' Commodities Subsidies

Independent Restaurants Have Some Advantages

Dillard's, 'Southern Living' Benefit McDonald House

Trade Show Tips for 2012

2011-09-27T12:00:00.000-04:00

Now is the time to prep for next year.

Three Tips for Tradeshow Success

"Many have pronounced tradeshow marketing dead," writes Bob Hebeisen at MarketingProfs. "But with the right strategy, hard work, and flawless execution, tradeshows can still be a productive part of your marketing plan." To make the most of your lead-generating budget, he suggests a twelve-step process that takes you from pre-show planning to post-show analysis. Here's a sampling of his advice:

Make sure the audience will want your product or service. Most tradeshows have a "who should attend" page at their website, and that's a good place to start. Go one better, though, and ask to see a complete list of the previous year's attendees—you can check for relevant job titles and company names—and confirm actual attendance numbers. "Don't expect every registrant to be from your target audience," advises Hebeisen, "but determine whether the ratio is acceptable."

Get on the presentation agenda. "Tradeshow attendees in North America are so jaded about walking the exhibit floor, especially at the executive level, that exhibitor presence alone might not be worthwhile," he notes. When you're on the presentation agenda, it validates your relevance to the audience, and gives you an opportunity to mention your booth for follow-up discussions.

Demand professional and aggressive performance from booth staff. Hebeisen recommends a strong elevator pitch, uniform attire, a ban on distracting smartphone usage and engagement with everyone who walks past the booth. It's not for nothing—an active approach can make the difference between 50 and 500 leads.

The Po!nt: Tradeshows can still generate solid leads, but you have to plan and work for them.

Source: MarketingProfs.

Gobbledygook

2011-09-27T06:00:00.001-04:00

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip:

When presenting a written proposal, always remember your audience. Keep it simple. Eliminate media jargon and acronyms.

Instead, use short simple words and sentences. Include content specific to the customer's industry or vertical market, particularly in the cover letter and executive summary.

Remember that people buy ideas, solutions, and feelings. Data should support that, not the other way around.

Source: Brandeis C. Hall, RAB, BHall@rab.com, (972)753-6786

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-26T18:00:00.001-04:00

Click & read:

Automotive

Existence Precedes Essence In Toyota Yaris Campaign

by Karl Greenberg

The effort for Toyota Yaris focuses on the vehicle's essence. "Yaris," says the campaign frontispiece, "It's a car." The campaign features a Web site, appropriately called itsaCar.com. The site stars actor, comedian and NYU faculty member Michael Showalter in a series of videos that border on performance art. ...Read the whole story >>

Food

Lunch Behaviors Can Vary Significantly By Generation

by Karlene Lukovitz

Millennials are the heaviest users of restaurants/foodservice options at lunch, but they're also the most likely age group to rely on "value" items for luncheon meals, according to a new Lunch Consumer Trend Report from foodservice industry consultancy/research firm Technomic, Inc. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Study: Make Way For Winter Holiday Markdowns

by Sarah Mahoney

While retail executives are looking for modest growth this holiday season, they're also bracing themselves for more last-minute markdowns, as consumers fret about the economy. "Compared to all the headlines about gloom and doom, you have to take some solace in this prediction of 3%," Doug Hart, partner in the retail and consumer product practice at BDO, tells Marketing Daily. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Audi A6 Takes Over Jersey City In FX Original TV Series

by Karl Greenberg

Audi, which launched its campaign for the A6 this month with creative that shows the roads as they really are, is now focusing on fantasy with the show, "Untitled Jersey City Project."vStayed tuned for eight, two-minute episodes airing during FX's Sunday prime-time movies and at www.untitledjerseycityproject.com. ...Read the whole story >>

Hospitality

Crowne Plaza Hotels Tees Off With Nike Golf Pro

by Tanya Irwin

Guests at IHG's Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts can earn Nike golf equipment and a chance to perfect their swing with PGA golfer Stewart Cink via the "Get a Better Game" stay-and-earn promotion. In addition, the first registered guest who stays 50 nights during the promotional period will play in the Pro Am at the 2012 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas with Cink. ...Read the whole story >>

App Offers Alternative To Reading Food Labels

Nissan Taps Deperez For Marketing

eBay Motors Launches Web-Based Show

Ready to Win?

2011-09-26T12:00:00.000-04:00

from the Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo:

No one cares how many hours you work.

No one cares if you are working 2 hours or 16 hours a day.

What they care about is if you are available (working) when the decision is being made.

Do you have the answers?

Do you have the solution?

Do you have it when they need it?

This is part of the beauty of the Internet.

It is why Google beat Microsoft, Yahoo and all the others as a search engine.

Google connects people to answers.

Do you have a website that provides answers?

Does Google connect people who are looking for answers to your website?

Is your website designed to move people from the visitor stage to the customer stage?

Are you sure?

Every day someone is looking for what you have to offer.

They are spending money, every day.

Once they buy from someone other than you, they are no longer going to buy from you.

You lost that one.

You can win more than you are right now.

This year I joined Cirrus ABS, the regions largest website development company that impressed me with their focus on net-centered marketing.

I can help, we can help.

Contact me at 260-255-4357 or SHoward@CirrusABS.com

The words of Scott Howard aka ScLoHo

:)

How Healthy Are You?

2011-09-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

from a sales perspective:

Daily Sales Tip: Get An Annual Checkup

Just as you should regularly go to the doctor for a checkup, you need to get a sales checkup.

You need to see a videotape or listen to a recording of yourself that captures how you look and sound when you pitch. What's good enough for your golf swing goes double for how you make your living.

Even if you saw a tape of yourself 18 months ago, you've changed. And even if it's for the better, you need to know.

Source: Marketing consultant/author Michael Schrage

Are you keeping the Magic?

2011-09-25T18:00:00.000-04:00

Next month I will be writing about this subject in relation to websites and your online presence. In the meantime, here's our Sunday Seth:

Lousy tomatoes and the rare search for wonder

My local supermarket stocks waxy, tasteless tomatoes from Chile and Mexico and Florida. They even do this in early September, when local tomatoes are delicious, plentiful and ought to be a bargain.

Are they clueless, evil or incompetent?

Perhaps none of these. This supermarket, like most supermarkets, is a checklist institution, one that is in the business of providing good enough, in quantity, at a price that's both cheap and profitable. You need a staple, they have it. They have flour and salt and eggs and macaroni and cheese. They've trained their customers to see them as an invisible vendor, as an organization that satisfices demand. It's too much work, too demanding and too risky to do the alternative...

They could program the store instead.

Program it the way a great theater programs the stage. No one goes to the theatre two or three times a week, expecting a good enough show. No, we only go when we hear there's something magical or terrific happening.

Over time, as institutions create habits and earn subscribers, they often switch, gradually making the move from magical (worth a trip, worth a conversation) to good (there when you need it). Most TV is just good. Magazines, too. When was the last time People magazine did something that made you sit up and say, "wow"? Of course, you could argue that they're not in the wow business, and you might be right.

One of the disrupting forces of the new media is that it makes harder and harder to succeed without wow. Since you have to earn the conversation regularly, phone it in too often and in fact, attention disappears.

Marketing/Sales = Water/Oil?

2011-09-25T12:00:00.000-04:00

from Pat McGraw:

Are Marketing and Sales Working Together

The director of marketing was proudly displaying the new design for a 68-page 4-color brochure that was about to go to the printers. The project had taken her and her team almost 6 months of work because it was viewed as a ‘major deal’ and that meant that everyone and their spouse was involved in the process.

At the quantity they were going to print, the cost was slightly more than $1 per brochure and the total bill was in the low 6-figures. That included manpower (staff), outsourced services (writing, photography), printing and shipping.

The brochure was (and always had been) beautiful. And it offered a complete overview of the business and the many products and services offered.

At the end of a 45 minute meeting, one of the C-level executives asked me what I thought and I responded that I was impressed with the final product – but I did have one question.

“How are you going to use all those brochures?”

Now, you can probably imagine the reaction that brought. Laughter. Head shaking. Shifting in chairs. Whispers.

Finally, the marketing director spoke for the group and replied.

“We need to have this when people ask what we do – so we give them on these.”

So I asked another question.

“Do you qualify those people and make sure they are able to buy what you sell before handing them the brochure?”

More nervous laughter, whispering and shifting chairs ensued before the marketing director replied.

“I don’t know. That’s up to sales.”

Now, that’s a dangerous answer. The marketing team is spending a substantial amount of their resources (human, financial, technology) on something that looks wonderful – but it’s something they have no understanding of how it is used to achieve the goals and objectives of the business.

So I went over the sales department and asked the team how they used the 68-page, 4-color brochure. And, surprise – most weren’t. They thought it was too much information and it confused the prospect. (Most hadn’t gone past the first 30-pages before they lost interest and put the brochure down for good.)

Then I asked what they thought they needed and, together, we created a list of what they felt they needed to help certain buyer types at certain stages of the buying/selling process. I took this back to the marketing team and explained the rationale behind each one – and two important things happened.

First, the print run for the 68-page, 4-color brochure was significantly reduced – saving the company a solid 5-figures. (And that was before fulfillment costs that included postage.)

Second, within the next two months, the marketing team produced the collateral for the sales team at a cost far less than the 5-figure saving that came from the smaller print run for the brochure.

I went over to sales and asked how the new collateral was working for them. Moral went up. Conversion rates went up. Average order size was up.

Imagine what we could accomplish for your business if you took advantage of my free coaching session.

No Sleaze Please

2011-09-25T06:00:00.004-04:00

from the Real Sales Dog:

Eliminating the Sleaze Factor in Sales

by C.J. Hayden

In her 15-plus years teaching entrepreneurs about sales and marketing, business coach C.J. Hayden has found that many of her clients say the most significant barrier to success is that they simply don't like to sell.

"The roots of this dislike are varied," says Hayden. "Sometimes what gets in the way is fear of rejection, or self-doubt of one's abilities. Other times it's lack of knowledge or inexperience; most of us don't like to do things when we feel we can't do them well. But a theme that rears its ugly head over and over again is this: a belief that sales and marketing is dishonest, manipulative, and sleazy."

"You might expect me to argue that these negative portrayals of marketing are not true," continues Hayden. "But in reality, they often are. Most of us experience on a daily basis inauthentic marketing, manipulative selling, and attempts at persuasion that rub us the wrong way."

"I'm not suggesting that you, the person reading this, are a sleazy salesperson," says Hayden. "In fact, I suspect it's much more likely that you aren't. But it just may be that you need to convince yourself of that truth in order to raise your comfort level about sales and marketing. To that end, I offer the following guidelines."

You are NOT a sleazy salesperson, if:

Continue reading...

BIG or small?

2011-09-24T18:00:00.000-04:00

Just 3 months until Christmas eve....

from my email:

Stores Reversing Big-Box Trend

The belief in retail that bigger is better may be fading. National chains known for their huge stores are starting to think smaller.

Big-box retailers are moving away from the one-large-size-fits-all strategy to a philosophy of getting more out of smaller spaces and assessing the needs of each location.

Wal-Mart Stores, whose Supercenters typically encompass over 185,000 square feet, has announced plans to build a number of 30,000- to 60,000-square-foot stores.

Many other big-box retailers -- including Best Buy, Office Depot, Target, Kohl's and J.C. Penney -- are looking to downsize existing stores, said Howard Davidowitz, president of Davidowitz & Associates, a national retail consulting and investment banking firm in New York.

"It's the biggest retail trend in the U.S. -- almost everybody is downsizing," he said.

Some chains are looking to downsize existing stores, while others are planning to make future stores smaller, Davidowitz said.

In Houston, Office Depot, Best Buy, Old Navy and Ashley Furniture HomeStores are among the chains looking to downsize existing stores, said Ed Wulfe, chairman and CEO of Wulfe & Co., a retail development and brokerage firm.

"Almost all big-box retailers are reassessing store size," Wulfe said. "It's different than 10 years ago when bigger was better." They're looking at ways to better utilize their space and get more sales per square foot, he said.

Subleasing strategy
Department stores, including Sears, are seeking opportunities to sublease space in their stores, he noted.

Gary Seals, CEO of Hill Country Holdings, the owners of nine Ashley Furniture HomeStores in Houston as well as Ashley stores in other cities, said his company is considering decreasing the size of its stores by subleasing space to other retailers.

"It would have to be a good fit," Seals said.

Ashley would adapt to a smaller space by taking slower-selling merchandise off the floor, Seals said.

His Houston Ashley stores vary from 30,000 to 45,000 square feet in size, and he's considering downsizing by anywhere from 6,000 to 15,000 square feet, Seals said. He leases the Houston properties.

He said he feels no urgency to downsize.

"We're bullish on Houston," Seals said. "All of our stores in Houston had double-digit increases for Labor Day," compared to the same time last year.

What consumers want
Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners, a consumer research and consulting firm based in New Canaan, Conn., sees the national downsizing trend being driven partly by consumer demand.

Consumers are looking at quicker, easier shopping experiences, rather than navigating 190,000-square-foot super stores, Johnson said.

"Retailers want smaller stores, but more stores," he said, so that consumers will be more likely to find one no matter where they go.

Best Buy, for example, has been opening kiosks at airports, he noted. There are seven Best Buy kiosks at George Bush Houston Intercontinental Airport, said Chad Stiernagle, the company's director of automated retail. The machines offer iPods, cameras, phone chargers and other items.

In many cases, the wish to downsize stems from pressure to cut costs, said Kenneth Katz, a Houston commercial real estate broker, whether it's due to increasing competition from online retailers or more sluggish consumer demand.

Retailers such as Target are planning smaller future stores because they are going into more urban locations where it's harder and more expensive to buy larger tracts of land, Davidowitz said.

Target is planning smaller-format stores that will be 60,000 to 100,000 square feet, compared with 135,000 in a traditional Target, company spokeswoman Amy Reilly said.

All the smaller-format Targets will be located in urban areas and, unlike more traditional Targets, will feature windows and have multiple floors.

Most suburban Targets are owned by the retailer, whereas urban stores will be leased, Reilly said.

"Many of our customers live in the city and drive to our stores in the suburbs," Reilly said. "We'll be bringing the Target experience to them."

The first four urban format Targets will be in Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles, and they will open starting in summer of next year. Target is initially focused on 10 markets.

Retail giant Wal-Mart has announced a major downsizing strategy, saying it will build hundreds of smaller stores over the next three years in rural and urban locations.

Inventory in the 30,000- to 60,000-square-foot stores will include groceries, health and beauty items and limited general merchandise, and some will have pharmacies, according to a company statement.

Opening up options
Mindy Kramer, Office Depot's director of public relations, emailed comments from Kevin Peters, the company's president of North American retail, explaining why Office Depot is considering trying new store formats.

"Smart retailers are finding ways to shrink their footprints," Peters wrote, and "the smaller footprint strategy" provides Office Depot with new growth options, including the opportunity to enter new and remote markets.

Office Depot could reduce store size from 24,000 square feet to about 15,000 to 17,000 square feet, Peters wrote.

The preferred downsizing strategy for many retailers is to renegotiate their existing leases, allowing their landlords to get space back, said Lance Gilliam, managing partner of UCR moodyrambin, a retail real estate brokerage firm.

When landlords are unwilling or unable to reclaim space and reduce the size of a tenant's space, retailers will seek subtenants, said Gilliam.

Subleasing can be challenging for a big-box retailer, Katz said.

Retailers typically expect landlords to give them improvement allowances when they move to a space, and they are not used to being in the position of providing improvement allowances for the subleasing retailer, he said.

(Source: Houston Chronicle, 09/19/11)

The Future belongs to Digital

2011-09-24T12:00:00.003-04:00

A few years ago I saw many in my generation with their iPhones, but not many of the younger generations; that has changed as prices have dropped and expectations have risen:

Millennials High on Digital and Friends

According to the "American Millennials" study from Barkley, with Service Management Group and The Boston Consulting Group, Millennials, compared to other generations, reported greater awareness of newer, youth-oriented cause marketing campaigns and greater exposure to campaigns through social media, while Non-Millennials rely on newspaper and direct mail.

Jeff Fromm, senior vice president, Barkley, says "... since the Millennials generation is larger than the Baby Boomers... and three times bigger than Generation X... understanding of Millennials' needs, tastes and behaviors will clearly shape... future business decisions... "

Highlights from the Study:

Millennials watch significantly less TV than Non-Millennials, says the report, watching 20-plus hours/week (26% versus 49%). When not watching live TV, Millennials are much more likely to watch shows mainly on their laptops (42% versus 18%), with DVR (40% versus 36%), or On-Demand (26% versus 18%)
70% of Millennials reported feeling more excited when their friends agreed with them about where to shop, eat and play. Only 48% of older adults were as heavily influenced by their friends and colleagues. Additionally, more Millennials than Non-Millennials reported using a mobile device while shopping to research products (50% versus 21%)
The majority of all respondents shop alone (60% Millennials, 69% Non- Millennials). However, Millennials report more shopping than Non-Millennials with family unit, spouse and children (13% versus 6%) and with adult friends (4% versus 2%)
70% of Millennials want to visit every continent in their lifetime. Fewer than half of older adults report that goal
Millennials accounted for 18% of their monthly restaurant spend in the fast-casual format, compared to only 13% for Non-Millennials. Additionally, Millennials crave snacking opportunities, and are more than twice as likely as older people to seek them out mid-morning, mid-afternoon and late at night
Millennials demand more knowledgeable and fashionable sales associates (29% versus 19%) while Non-Millennials value sales associates who know to apply discounts and offer promotions (65% versus 51%)

And, additional study information reported by EMarketer, shows that a third of Millennials like brands more if they use social media, nearly double the percentage of older adults who said the same. In addition, over 30% of Millennials thought it was annoying for brands to be on sites like Facebook and Twitter, making this group less tolerant of social media marketing.

23.5% of Millennials interacted with content from a brand's Facebook page at least once a daily, vs. 17% of older adults who did the same. Millennials were also 4.4 percentage points more likely to interact with brand content between one and six times per week. Overall older adults were nearly twice as likely never to engage with brand content on Facebook.

(Source: The Center For Media Research, 09/7/11)

Sales Manager Tips

2011-09-24T06:00:00.000-04:00

I've been in management and I've been on the other end too.

Usually I really hated having my boss ride along with me, unless I needed him/her for a specific reason:

Here's why (from RAB.com):

Managing the Sales Call

As a sales manager, there's no better way of coaching than joint sales calls in the field with your sales personnel. However, the big mistake many sales managers make on a joint call is that when the salesperson gets in trouble, the manager takes over the call. This is the worst thing that can happen.

The salesperson learns nothing and many times resents the manager for interfering. In making field sales calls, take the time to properly plan the call. If it is to be a joint presentation with the manager and the salesperson, then plan out what parts of the sales procedure each will cover.

If the objective on the sales call is for the manager to observe the salesperson in a selling situation, then it should be clarified before the call.

The salesperson is to handle the call and accomplish the objective. What typically happens, however, is that the prospect or customer will direct his/her question to the manager instead of the salesperson. When that occurs, the manager should just look to the salesperson to answer the question. Otherwise the manager ends up taking over the call and therefore learns nothing about the salesperson's selling abilities.

Source: Sales consultant/trainer Roy Chitwood

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-23T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & read:

Retail

Elmo's Tambourine Rocks Toys R Us Hot List

by Sarah Mahoney

Toys R Us has unfurled its holiday Hot List, which this year includes Sesame Street Let's Rock, Elmo from Hasbro, Air Hogs Hyper Actives from Spin Master, LEGO's Ninjago Lightning Dragon and Lalaloopsy Silly Hair dolls from MGA Entertainment. The Wayne, N.J.-based toy retailer says it is also working Facebook more prominently into its holiday marketing plans, using its page as "the ultimate hub of hot toy information for gift-givers." ...Read the whole story >>

Food

Food Industry Redubs FOP Labeling System

by Karlene Lukovitz

The food and beverage industry has renamed its new, voluntary front-of-package nutrition labeling system, from "Nutrition Keys" to "Facts Up Front." The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced the new name, as well as the launch of a website, FactsUpFront.org. The site is a first effort in a $50 million consumer awareness/education campaign that will go into full throttle next year. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

(Another) Actor Is New Voice Of Honda

by Karl Greenberg

Actor Jason Bateman, the star of "Horrible Bosses," does the voiceover in Honda's latest Accord sedan TV spot. The actor will also be in upcoming spots for the Accord and the redesigned 2012 Pilot. Automakers have, in recent years, been particularly fond of hiring A-listers to be their voices, leading to some interesting snaggles. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Ford, Nissan Create Reality Shows For Millennials

by Karl Greenberg

This summer Ford brought racing, Millennials, and the Fiesta, Mustang and Ranger vehicles together via a marketing partnership with the X-Games around several racing categories. Nissan is doing a similar program, but the reward is different and the vehicle for getting there begins in the virtual world. ...Read the whole story >>

Telecom

Time Warner Cable Touts Service In TV Spot

by Aaron Baar

Time Warner Cable is looking to inject a little luxury into the television subscription space via a new ad campaign touting its nearly year-old SignatureHome packages. One spot begins with a woman dropping her robe to reveal a black silk nightgown getting into her bed with (presumably) her husband to watch some television, as onscreen text reads "Enhanced TV." ...Read the whole story >>

Nike Readies LeBron 9

General Mills's Earnings Down, But Beat Expectations

September Looking Better Than August For Auto Sales

Cellular South To Become C Spire

Social Sharing

2011-09-23T12:00:00.000-04:00

So, you have a website.

Are you using Social Share buttons to help others help you?

From Mediapost:

Share Buttons on Social Sites Increase Exposure Sevenfold

According to BrightEdge, an in-depth analysis of more than 4 million tweets shows pages that display Twitter share buttons get 7 times the social media mentions than sites that do not, pointing to enormous social marketing opportunity.

The September issue of the BrightEdge SocialShare Analysis shows that almost half of the largest 10,000 sites on the Web still don't display any kind of social sharing links or buttons. 53.6% of the largest 10,000 sites on the Web display some social links or buttons on their front pages, up from 52.8 percent in late July.

Adoption of Social on Homepages of Top Websites (Top 10,000 Websites)
Type of Site	% of Total
Sites with social links of plugins	53.6%
No social links or plugins	46.4
Source: BrightEdge Research, September 2011

Jim Yu, CEO of BrightEdge, notes that "... social sharing buttons can drive real social traffic that will inevitably drive sales, brand awareness or affinity... but... brands are not taking advantage of this simple, cost free tool... "

The study analyzed a representative data stream of 4 million tweets that were selected at random to determine which tweets carried shared information, and if it was shared with tools and buttons, links or other methods.
The examination revealed that pages that display Twitter share buttons or links were distributed to followers on average about seven times more often than pages that did not have similar sharing tools. This could lead to exposure to millions of additional consumers for the sites that took the modest step of just installing social sharing buttons, opines the report.

Average Number of Link Mentions Per Site
*Buttons*	*Mentions*
Sites with no Buttons	4
Sites with Tweet Button	27
Source: BrightEdge Research, Aug 2011

In the social adoption analysis, all of the leading social sites saw increases in usage compared to the previous month, but the two largest and most established social platforms have commanding leads in market share. Facebook plugins (e.g. the Like button and links to fan pages) are seen on homepages of more than 50 percent of the world's largest sites. While buttons and links for Twitter are seen on 42.5 percent of the top 10,000 sites. Google plus continues to grow, but is still only used on about 8.5 percent of the largest 10,000 sites.

Social Links/Plugins on Homepages of Top Sites
*Social Site*	*With Social Links/Plugins*	*Change From Previous Month*
Facebook	50.3%	Up from 49.5%
Twitter	42.5%	Up from 42.4%
Google+	8.1%	Up from 7.3%
LinkedIn	4.0%	Unchanged
Source: BrightEdge Research, SocialShare Analysis, September 2011

While this growth is healthy, concludes the report, there are still a surprising number of major sites that have not fully embraced social marketing. The absence of any social engagement vehicles such as Social Links, Facebook plugins and Twitter Buttons on the homepages of a large number of major sites shows there is significant untapped opportunity for social media to drive greater marketing exposure for brands.

The release may be found here.

And if you help with this, contact me.

Trust

2011-09-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

Excellent advice from Jill:

How to Make Your Prospects Believe You When They Don't
By Jill Konrath

We were just approaching Des Moines, traveling at 72 miles per hour on I-35 when it hit me. My husband, who was driving, didn't even notice. But for me, the effect was jarring.

"Holy cow!" I exclaimed. (That's really appropriate when you're in Iowa.) I held up Wikibrands , the book I was reading. "Did you know that the Edelman Trust Barometer says that only 8 percent of people trust what companies say about themselves?"

My husband shrugged his shoulders and gave me that "Duh" look. Clearly, wasn't impacting him the way it did me. All I could think about was what salespeople were saying and what their prospects were hearing.

Seller: We offer state-of-the art technology.
Prospect: I don't believe it. And even if it's true, your lead will only last a short time.

Seller: We really care about our customers.
Prospect: That's what they all say before the get the order. Then they ignore you.

Seller: We're #1 in the XYZ Ranking.
Prospect: Statistics can easily lie.

Seller: We offer a unique approach to solving your problems.
Prospect: Sure. You, along with everyone else.

This is serious. 92% of the time you talk about your own company, you're not believable. And they more wonderful things you spout, the more unbelievable you are.

So what's the answer?

Here are three strategies you can use to be more believable.

Don't say anything nice about your product/service.

Not one blasted thing, because it only destroys your credibility. Don't pass out any of your "aren't we wonderful" marketing brochures either. They have the same negative impact. This is especially important in your early conversations.
Focus on being helpful in every interaction.

Let your prospect know about the results your other clients have achieved. Talk about their critical business issues. Share ideas, insights and information that you think would be beneficial to them. Ask questions. But most of all, make sure they have no doubts that your intent is to provide value to them.
Be truthful, even when it hurts.

Your product, service or solution is not perfect for everyone. When you're under corporate or self-induced pressure to close more sales, this can be really hard to do. There are times you might even recommend a competitor because it's the right thing to do.

Developing trust is essential. Without it, you don't have a chance to get the business. With it, you'll have an opportunity to grow long-standing, highly profitable relationships. It's worth the effort.

Jill Konrath, author of SNAP Selling and Selling to Big Companies , helps sellers get more prospects in their pipeline, speed up sales cycles and land bigger contracts. She's a frequent speaker at sales conferences. For more fresh sales strategies that work with crazy-busy prospects, visit www.jillkonrath.com.

Thursday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-22T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click and read.

I'm busy having fun.

Automotive

General Motors' GMC Takes NFL Sponsorship On The Road

by Karl Greenberg

GMC is the official vehicle of the NFL, but the General Motors division isn't filling that bucket with TV ads, and will not have vehicles at stadium parking lots during games. But it has something that might be better: A road show called the "GMC Monday Night Football Tour" that targets important game markets the weekend before games, and gets a media boost from NFL players themselves. ...Read the whole story >>

Technology

Xerox: 'We're More Than A Copier Company'

by Aaron Baar

In the second year of its efforts to convince the world that it makes more than copiers, Xerox is showcasing how it helps two new businesses in different ways while looking to get more people involved via a Twitter contest. The Twitter-based sweepstakes asks people to complete the line, "To me, real business means ....", and add the hashtag #FlyWithXerox. One winner will win two round-trip tickets on Virgin America. ...Read the whole story >>

Restaurants

Carl's Jr., Hardee's Team With Gen Y News Site

by Karlene Lukovitz

CKE Restaurants, Inc. has signed a deal with the new mobile news site OneMinuteNews.com to reach the site's young users with interactive, geo-targeted video advertising for its Carl's Jr. and Hardee's chains. The deal makes CKE the first advertiser to employ the privately held site's video solution. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Forecast: Expect Holiday Ho-Hos To Be Only So-So

by Sarah Mahoney

'Tis the season to read holiday tea leaves, and three just-released forecasts predict that consumer spending will be lukewarm, at best. At the low end, the International Council of Shopping Centers is looking for a 2.2% rise. And while the trade group points out that there are many components to such forecast, the overall trend is tepid. ...Read the whole story >>

Spirits

Industry Council Offers Guidelines For Spirits Marketing

by Karl Greenberg

The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) has issued new guidelines for alcohol advertising and marketing on social networking sites and other digital communications platforms. The guidelines suggest "Age-gating" before direct dialogue between advertisers and consumers as well as privacy policies that protect consumers from data collection and use of personal information by advertisers. ...Read the whole story >>

Honda Gear At John Deere

ConAgra's Earnings Hit By Costs

Lincoln Financial Taps DePeau For CMO Spot

New Ad Campaigns

2011-09-22T12:00:00.000-04:00

Another weekly update from Amy:

Strip to your SmartWool. Warm up those hands. Zombies. Let's launch!

Legal Sea Foods managed to create three TV ads that reference the issue of seafood sustainability while mocking it at the same time. In one ad, a lone crab is shown on a beach as a voiceover says: "Save the crab. Save it to show that every creature is sacred, no matter how small. Or just save it so we can chop it up into tasty little crab cakes." Ouch. See it here. Salmon might look great swimming upstream, but how good would they taste covered in lemon chive butter sauce? Watch it here. Trout can't catch a break, either. They look peaceful swimming and tasty atop a grill. See it here. DeVito/Verdi created the campaign.

eBay launched a trio of funny ads to promote its mobile app. "When it's on your mind, it's on eBay," shows consumers buying items on the fly, and saving one woman from wearing mom jeans. A daughter, on the hunt for the perfect pair of jeans, shares her dilemma with mom. Next thing you know, mom tells daughter to save her money since she has a bin of jeans lying around. Mom jeans. Nice and loose. The daughter quickly scoops up three pairs of jeans on eBay and thanks her lucky stars she's not driving home with a trunk full of mom jeans. See it here. Celebrity magazines are good for finding trendy shoes and mindless gossip while at the salon. One woman is not a fan of a certain actress -- but loves, and buys, the same shoes modeled by the A-lister. Watch it here. "Left Out" is my favorite. An office staff meeting begins, and everyone whips out their tablets for note taking, except one man who goes old-school with a pad and pen. As he's being ridiculed, he buys a tablet on eBay. Not so he'll fit in, mainly because his pen leaked through his shirt, adding to his embarrassment. See it here. Venables Bell & Partners created the campaign.

"Because you're not truly alive until you're out killing the undead." So says the voiceover for the final ad promoting Thursday's launch of "Call of Duty: Black Ops Rezurrection." The Zombie Lab is again open for roving eyes to see mind-blowing experiments. Heads will roll, so scientists must have stomachs of steel to work this lab. Ever wonder how zombies react to the moon's low gravity or extreme G-force? It's a very detached experience. See the ad here, created by TBWA/Chiat/Day LA and The Ant Farm.

"Dust to Dust" is a 60-second ad promoting the launch of "Gears of War 3," which hit shelves yesterday. The final game in the GOW trilogy follows Marcus Fenix, his fellow Gear Dominic Santiago, and the other members of Delta squad, as they work their way through a war-torn battlefield. The ad is perfectly set to the song "Into Dust" by Mazzy Star and features historical markers from past GOW games, like Emergence Day and The Flooding of Jacinto. The ad ends with Marcus and Dominic, side-by-side, looking at a frenzied battlefield. "Brothers to the end" closes the ad, seen here, and created by twofifteenmccann.

Meet Tad, a salesman for the tech company VMlimited. Tad sells outdated tech solutions from his mobile office, a tricked-out van from the 1970s. Look for tight pants, a Rolodex, and felt pictures of animals. Tad conducts serious business about cloud computing and unlimited pricing plans, things his consumers want but he can't deliver. "Clouds aren't bad, but they're a fad," says Tad. The online video promotes Microsoft's cloud offerings. See the video here, created by Deutsch NY.

Samsung launched "The Way We're Wired," a 60-second spot promoting its latest Galaxy phone. "Never Settle" shows mobile users watching videos on their phones, ranging from a child taking first steps, the iconic running scene in "Rocky," to a Martin Luther King, Jr. speech and a motocross tournament. The voiceover within the spot says: "Nobody ever set their sights on second place. Who aspires to be almost remembered? There's a reason there are no giant foam fingers that say we're number three." Essentially: nobody's perfect, but we all aspire to be. See the ad here, created by Leo Burnett.

The Zippo hand warmer might be ideal for hunters, ice fishermen and skiers, but it should be required for all doctors for use pre-patient examinations. Brunner created an amusing TV spot for the product, starring a farmer and his cow. The first time the cow is milked, it lets out a moo that screams: Hey, warm up those hands, pal. The farmer goes back to his house, retrieves his hand warmer and presents the cow with warm hands the second time around. The spot, seen here, is running in U.S. and European markets.

SmartWool launched a Facebook application encouraging consumers to take a picture of themselves on a skiing or camping trip stripped down to their SmartWool gear, post it to Facebook and tag themselves. With the way Facebook changed its newsfeed setting today, everyone and their mother will see the pics. Judging by the amount of submissions, this app is as popular as Smartwool is warm. Lucky submissions will be used for a future Smartwool print ad campaign. Currently, the app is promoted via online and print ads, running in Ski, Outside, Backpacker and Mountain Sports. See the ads here and here, created by Victors & Spoils.

Random iPhone App of the week: Fans of FX's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," get ready for some Flipadelphia flip cup action with a free app created by HUGE. The app is based on "The Gang Reignites the Rivalry" episode, and places Paddy's Pub and the game of flip cup close by at all times. Users can play solo against a timer or use Bluetooth to play against friends in the "versus" mode. Miss your flips and expect to be berated by the show's cast. Players can share scores and challenge friends via Facebook, Twitter or email. Download it here.

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

Diagnose with these 3 Steps

2011-09-22T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip: Troubleshooting the Closing Process

When executives contact me for help, the conversation usually starts with, "My sales people can't close! Can you help me?" Rarely does "weak closing" turn out to be the real issue. Closing is merely the final step of the process. If a runner isn't winning races, it's not because he doesn't have the ability to pull down the finish line tape. There is something else in his game that is impacting performance.

Not sure why your team isn't performing as you expect, let's troubleshoot the issue. Two questions for starters...

1. Did you hire the right salesperson for the role? If you aren't getting the performance levels you expect, you may have selected the wrong person to do the job? If you haven't defined your ideal salesperson for the role, this could be your smoking gun!

2. How did you bring the salesperson onto your team? Many companies leave success to chance and don't have an onboarding program in place during which the salesperson learns how to apply their sales skills in your sales role. Without this bridge, you have a high risk of new hire failure.

If you feel you have the right person on your team and have prepared him/her for success...and you still aren't achieving the results, here are some other areas to investigate.

1. Do you have a well-defined Ideal Client Profile? Not every prospect is a match for your offerings. If you don't have a clear definition of your ideal client, your salespeople could be chasing deals that are nothing more than a mirage. If you are a value-provider and the prospect buys cheap, there's little chance of a deal being consummated.

2. Have you documented your Needs Analysis Strategy? Salespeople need your guidance in determining what questions to ask prospects, when to ask them, why they are relevant and where to direct the conversation based on the received responses.

3. Have you set expectations for Pre-Call Research? No one wants to feel like the sales call of the day. Your salespeople need to master the industry, competitors, prospects and the people who affect the buying decision. Remember, companies don't buy anything...people do!

4. Have your salespeople mastered the Two Most Powerful Words in Sales? These aren't trick words. Yet, mastery of them will guarantee that your salespeople sell more than they ever have before. Unfortunately, they never get to say these words to prospects.

Those two words...Synergy and Priority. Synergy is the connection between buyer challenges and supplier capabilities...the solutions to the problems. Priority answers why now? Synergy gets deals into the sales pipeline. Priority gets them to come out the other side. If your seller can't position priority, he/she will be quickly reminded of the old Roach Motel. Deals will come into the funnel, but they'll never come out!

The next time you think that "weak closing" is the reason your team isn't selling, run through these troubleshooting steps to get to the real issues.

Source: Sales management strategist Lee Salz, founder of Sales Architects

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-21T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Restaurants

Killing the 'King' Looks Positive For Burger King

by Karlene Lukovitz

The new, much less edgy and teen-oriented creative approach has been second-guessed by some in the industry. However, as Technomic President Ron Paul has pointed out, focusing on "fresh" has worked incredibly well for Whole Foods and Subway, and is also now the rallying cry for Target, 7-Eleven and a growing number of other brands. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Van Heusen, GQ, ESPN Ask Men To Step Up Their Style

by Sarah Mahoney

In the hopes that it can encourage American men to pull up their pants and ditch their XXL t-shirts, Van Heusen is introducing an "Institute of Style." A partnership with GQ and ESPN, the effort hopes to challenge men to step up their style game, and even share their transformation in a "From Schlub to Swagger" contest on the campaign's website. ...Read the whole story >>

Zipcar Taps Levy For Humorous Take On Urban Life

by Karl Greenberg

Car share company Zipcar has tapped comedian Dan Levy for a video series central to a social media push to promote the Boston-based service as an automotive solution to the frenetic urban life. The effort, "One Crazy Day," is a Facebook-based program where consumers give Levy a series of tasks that have to be completed in one day via Zipcar. ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

Customer Satisfaction With Computers Is Unchanged

by Aaron Baar

"A leveling out is obviously not a change," Forrest Morgeson, ACSI's director of research, tells Marketing Daily. "Obviously for all customers and the industry, you'd like to see it increase, but [staying still] is not necessarily a bad thing." ...Read the whole story >>

Entertainment

WKSU Folk Festival Campaign: It's Not Your Grandfather's Folk

by Karl Greenberg

The key to getting college students interested in music that falls, broadly, under the banner of "folk" probably isn't that different than trying to get them into cars called Cadillac. Except instead of a "butts in seats" strategy, it's about "buds in ears." ...Read the whole story >>

Clarification: 1-800-Dentist Previously Worked With DonatWald+Haque

Color Update: For Spring, Think Brights And Naturals

Quaker, Zazu Launch Morning Mobile App

Pizza Hut Spot Spoofs Reggie Bush 'Trade'

Nissan Taps Adam Carolla For Versa Road Trip Effort

Yankees Mariano Rivera Pitching Arrid Extra Dry

Mercury Insurance, NASCAR Team For Anti-Texting Effort

Texas Cadillac Dealers Launch Charity Effort

T-Mobile To Host 1-Day Smartphone Sale

The NetFlix Fix?

2011-09-21T12:00:00.000-04:00

The words of Laura Ries:

Netflix Strategy is Right and Wrong

There are several important lessons to be learned from the Netflix brand story. In recent days, the story has heated up after CEO Reed Hasting’s Sunday night email blast and blog post.

In his email, Hasting apologized profusely, then turned around and further enraged his loyal 23-million subscriber base by taking the Netflix brand away from its red envelopes. Let me break down the good, the bad and the ugly of this classic story.

In the beginning.

Netflix was founded in 1997 and two years later it became the subscription-based DVD-by-mail service millions of customers in the United States and around the world were incredibly passionate about.

Netflix turned the Blockbuster model on its head. With its strict and steep late fees, Blockbuster created a lot of unhappy customers. So Netflix did the opposite and let consumers keep a movie as long as they wanted. When they returned one movie, they got another one.

It wasn’t as fast as Blockbuster; customers had to wait to get their DVDs in the mail. But no late fees, the fun of picking out your own movies, and the excitement of seeing the red package in the mail built a powerful Netflex brand.

Intense consumer loyalty and unbelievable word-of-mouth helped the Netflix brand took off like a rocket. Ten years later, Netflix had a library of 100,000 titles and 10 million subscribers.

Today, Netflix has 23 million subscribers, a high-flying stock and is very profitable. Last year its stock increased over 200%. Revenue in 2010 jumped 29% to $2.16 billion and net income was up 39% to $161 million. But with profits sometimes comes arrogance.

What’s next

One thing is always certain with technology: change is coming. In music, we went from record, to tape, to CD to digital. In video rental, we went from Betamax, to VHS, to DVD, to pay-per-view, to digital streaming.

Yet, it takes time for a new technology to completely replace an old one. This leaves existing brands in a bind. Do we stick with our profitable bread-and-butter product or do we move to the new technology? It might be small now but one day will probably take over the industry? How do we cross the chasm?

Netflix owns movies-by-mail. They might make a lot of money today, but are not the future. Netflix has wisely bet on streaming as its future. And they have wisely made an aggressive move to be first in the mind in order to dominate the new streaming-video industry. Currently, Netflix is the leader in the category.

But Netflix made a critical error by using the same name on its new streaming business as it does on its existing mail business. It might be logical to take a trusted and loved brand name and extend it from one business to the next. But it doesn’t make marketing sense. As time goes, each business will compete and clash with each other. Having the same name on both businesses is confusing from both a product and especially a pricing stand-point.

What Netflix needed was a new brand name. In his email to subscribers, Reed Hastings eloquently points this out. Except there is one huge problem. Netflix needed the new name for the streaming business and not the mail business.

Netflix means mail. You can’t move a brand so strongly held in the mind into a new position, especially one that is more technologically sophisticated. It is the same reason Barnes & Noble had trouble moving online for books (with the B&N name.) Or Blockbuster had trouble moving from stores to mail or streaming with the Blockbuster name. Both Barnes & Noble and Blockbuster needed new brand names for their online businesses. Now Blockbuster is bankrupt and Barnes & Noble is in trouble. They lost $74 million on sales of $7 billion last year.

Too late

Netflix also made a huge error by doing the name change now. The time for the new streaming brand name was when it launched its streaming business. Not several years later.

Netflix should have launched the new brand using its strong Netflix brand as the endorser. Never underestimate the power of a second brand. Especially when it is launched by a leader. Toyota successfully used this strategy when it launched Lexus, Scion and Prius.

You can’t change the past, but this summer Netflix had much better options than the ones it chose. In July, the company announced price hikes and new separate streaming plans. Almost two months later, it took the Netflix brand away from the 23-million loyal subscribers who love it and slapped it on its streaming service.

To add insult to injury, Netflix will give its movies-by-mail customers a new brand name, Qwikster. Why not just throw your customers down and stomp on their faces?

This summer, the better alternative would have been to buy Hulu. Netflex could then have used Hulu as its streaming TV/movie brand. Netflix, of course, would remain as the mail brand.

When you need a better name, buying a company to use its name can be a great strategy. Chemical Bank bought Chase. And ValueJet brought Airtran.

And if the rumors are right, and a spin-off is in the process, leaving the Netflix name with the mail business would make it more desirable to potential investors. Who wants to own Qwikster? The value of a business has a lot to do with a strong brand name.

For Netflix the future is uncertain. They have created a mess of their own making which has gotten customers extremely angry. The strategy of keeping up with a rapidly-changing technology by launching a second brand was an astute one. Unfortunately they fell down on the branding part and got it all backwards. Netflix is mail and the new brand should have been streaming. Sad to see it happen to such a nice company. Reed, next time call me first.

Why You Need to Listen 1st

2011-09-21T06:00:00.000-04:00

Short and to the point, an extra dose of Seth Godin this week:

Can't watch your parade if the house is on fire

People are in pain. Often of their own making, they tell themselves a story that obsesses/distracts and compels them. "I'll never get a movie gig again," "I can't believe they didn't like what I offered," "My job is in jeopardy," "Money's too tight to buy all the things I want..." "Does my butt look fat in these shorts?"

You can jump up and down and sing and dance and launch fireworks, but if the consumer's story of pain is vivid enough, you will be ignored. When the house is on fire, all your audience wants is a hose.

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-20T18:00:00.000-04:00

By now you know about Netflix, but do you know about these other stories?

Entertainment

Netflix Spins Off DVD Service

by Tanya Irwin

The name Qwikster was chosen because it refers to quick delivery. There are no new pricing changes. Some other things won't change, CEO Reed Hastings told subscribers in a Sept. 19 email. "For me the Netflix red envelope has always been a source of joy," he wrote. "The new envelope is still that lovely red, but now it will have a Qwikster logo. I know that logo will grow on me over time, but still, it is hard. I imagine it will be similar for many of you." ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

NASCAR Signs Trio Of Sponsors For Vegas Promo

by Karl Greenberg

NASCAR is bringing back its "Send Me 2 Vegas" promotion and Ford Motor Co., Coca-Cola and the Game Show Network are all on board as sponsors. The grand prize is a 2012 Ford Explorer XLT SUV, two VIP tickets to NASCAR "After The Lap," the opportunity to be featured in an on-air promotional spot on the Game Show Network and a two-night stay at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Las Vegas. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

New Owners Prep Marketing For VO5

by Sarah Mahoney

Alberto VO5's new owner says it will reposition the old haircare brand, with marketing and advertising expected to appear early next year. "Our intent is to reinvigorate the brands with product innovation, and by re-engaging with the consumer," Brynwood's managing partner Dario U. Margve tells Marketing Daily, including new packaging, new marketing and new ads. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Customer Experience Management: Extinction Bound?

by Karlene Lukovitz

Customer experience management (CEM) is in danger of being "misunderstood into extinction," maintains Steven Walden, senior head of research and consulting for Beyond Philosophy. The study found that 78% of executives now in CE have been redeployed from areas such as marketing and customer service, with no background in CE. ...Read the whole story >>

Financial Services

Ally Bank Launches 'People Sense' Campaign

by Tanya Irwin

Ally Bank is launching its first new ad campaign in almost exactly one year. Creative centers on the concept of "people sense" -- or on the financial institution's goal of doing right by its customers, because it also makes good business sense. This is the first new work for Ally in almost exactly one year. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Automakers Increase Mobile Ad Spending

by Karl Greenberg

Automakers are moving into the mobile media market, particularly with location-based programs. Mobile automotive display advertising increased 169% from 2009 to 2010. That's 33,277 versus 19,724 auto, aftermarket, and related entities, according to comScore. ...Read the whole story >>

Industry Releases Digital Marketing Measurement Solution

Kia Wants YOU To Shuffle

Consumers Panic About Economy, Trim Spending

Porsche Brings In New VP Marketing NA

Esurance Selects Leo Burnett

Dealing With Shorter Attention Spans

2011-09-20T12:00:00.000-04:00

Mediapost featured a story from a 20-something year old, (Gen Y), that gives some tips on how to deal with shorter attention spans.

Don't think it's just Gen Y.

I know 60 year olds who have this same condition.

As a matter of fact, it's not just a generational thing, it's a lifestyle thing. So, everyone ought to pay attention to this:

How To Break Through Gen Y's ADD

My generation -- Gen Y -- is the most over-stimulated group of people there will likely ever be. We came into a rapidly evolving world of technology, with TVs in every room of our childhood houses and our phones buzzing every five minutes with a text from a friend.

The good thing is that this is an evolution and some brands -- such as Mint.com and Hipmunk -- are snagging Gen Yers by breaking through that mass of confusion-inducing, Flash-saturated websites to put together a model of working with Gen Y consumers.

Perfect Your User Interface Take a look at Orbitz.com and then check out Hipmunk.com. It's pretty easy to guess which one has venture capitalists falling over themselves to back.

Hipmunk is revolutionizing travel search by stripping its website to a uber-functional search engine and removing all of the distractions. The search results let you sort by a number of criteria and make it easy to see which flights have WiFi.

Hipmunk makes it easy to focus because it's streamlined and functional. There is very little chance I will click on a banner and break away from my path to booking.

Remind to Retain One of the top iPhone apps in a survey from L2 ThinkTank of Gen Y affluents is Mint.com. The financial management website with bank-level security pulls in your checking, savings, investment, and credit card accounts to make budgeting a cinch.

It's free, it has the simplest interface of any of the popular financial websites and it has a brilliant system of reminders about everything from upcoming bills and low checking account balances to notices that I'm paying more than the average Mint.com user for car insurance.

Mint.com becomes somewhat indispensable for Gen Y users who are risk averse when it comes to investing, according to a recent survey from MFS Investment Management. The worry of managing your money is at least relieved a little by this amazing system of notices and reminders.

Take that one step further, how awesome would it be to have my local J. Crew send me a notification that the pants I wanted are now in stock in my size?

Set it and forget it.

Hire Amazing Copywriters Know what you want to say and get people who can convey that in a simple, clever, straightforward manner.

Cut out the clutter of your product descriptions and sales messages to grab a Gen Y user's attention, hold on to it and convert a sale. From a website to a brochure or flyer, copywriting should be a priority.

The multi-screen, multi-tab Gen Y consumer is unlikely to become any more focused in the near future, so design well, follow-up often and write the best copy you possibly can.

Patrick Evans is a Gen Y member marketing to Gen Y consumers as marketing and communications manager at STA Travel, the youth travel expert enabling students and young adults to explore the world by creating experiences filled with adventure, discovery and personal growth. Chat with him on Twitter at @statravelUS or @thatpatrick.

Listen to what's not being Said

2011-09-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Uncovering the REAL Reason

As a business owner or sales manager, we constantly hear the same responses from our sales team when they fail to close a deal. Here are some common examples: "The competition bought the business;" "Everything is on hold right now;" "Budgets are frozen;" or the number one response, "Our price was too high."

What's the real reason they turned us down? We'll never really know, unless we ask the right, and sometimes tough, questions up front. The more accurately you identify the issues and the prospect's concerns, the easier it is to qualify the opportunity.

Identifying our prospect's resistance to buy also requires listening between the lines. Not everything said in conversation represents the whole story. Your sales team needs to read body language, eye contact and voice inflection throughout the sales process to identify where their prospect is raising an objection -- even when they don't say it out loud. For example, did they cringe when the salesperson mentioned price, delivery schedule or quantity. When that happened, did the salesperson seize the opportunity to ask direct questions on that issue?

By asking the right questions and "reading" the prospect, salespeople may not always get a "Yes" answer, but at least they'll find out why the prospect said "No' or "Not right now."

Source: Sales consultant Steve Hackett

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-19T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Automotive

Ford Sock Puppet Visits 'Automobile Magazine'

by Karl Greenberg

A new series of videos featuring Doug and his perpetually chagrined sidekick and ersatz Ford marketer John reflect a partnership with auto-vertical publisher Bonita Springs, Fla.-based Source Interlink Media (SIM). The videos star the real staff of SIM's Automobile Magazine. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Streaming Provides Preview For Music Buy

by Aaron Baar

According to a survey of 1,000 consumers conducted by Insight Research Group (along with digital music service eMusic), more than half (53%) of those who purchase music online also buy digital music files to own. The survey found consumers like to use streaming services to discover and listen to new music before they purchase it. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

L.L. Bean Rolls Out New Ad Campaign

by Sarah Mahoney

In addition to underscoring the universally free shipping offer, it builds on the Freeport, Maine-based company's commitment to both customer service and quality, David Hughes, account director at GSD&M, which handles the account, tells Marketing Daily. ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

Miller Lite, Goodyear, Dollar General Back 'The Chase'

by Tanya Irwin

Miller Lite will give a "man cave" to two winners every time race car driver Brad Keselowski wins during The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. New Sprint Cup Series sponsor Dollar General is running a sweepstakes through Nov. 12 in 9,500 stores nationwide, with participation from such NASCAR official partners as Unilever and Coca-Cola. ...Read the whole story >>

Food

Birds Eye Aims To Shake Up Frozen Veggie Status Quo

by Karlene Lukovitz

With the U.S. Department of Agriculture's new MyPlate icon driving home the message that healthy eating means making vegetables and fruits half of each meal and First Lady Michelle Obama aggressively promoting her "Let's Move" initiatives to stem childhood obesity, Birds Eye sees an unprecedented opportunity to get more of its frozen vegetables onto Americans' plates. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Consumers More Critical Of Cause Marketing

by Karl Greenberg

"One of the most interesting developments in the area of social good is the rise of 'shared value' -- by putting social issues at the center of their strategy, brands can benefit their business, their customers and society in general." ...Read the whole story >>

Casa Noble Tequila, Bar Louie Launch Mobile Contest

BMW Gets New Diversity Agencies

Campbell Launching 35 Products This Fall

Cyclist Is Final Member Of BMW's Olympic Lineup

German SEAT Auto Brand Launches In-Text Campaign

Carhartt Launches 'Everyday Icon' Campaign

Mixing New & Old

2011-09-19T12:00:00.000-04:00

I had a conversation last week with an old friend who just started a new consulting firm.

We were discussing the division between those that are pro new media and those that are against it.

It's sort of a silly argument.

Last weeks post on the Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo touched on this subject:

Old Fashioned & New Tech

When I first entered the media world I was a 16 year old high school student who was paid to babysit a radio transmitter and take meter readings every two hours.

The Federal Communications Commission required a properly licensed individual to be on site at all times when a radio station was on the air.

This was 1976.

35 years later, due to a combination of rule changes working hand in hand with tech changes, this type of job no longer exists.

Radio stations still exist, however.

The best ones still use human beings talking and sharing local events and information, just like they have for decades.

Now, think about your business.

What are the old fashioned elements that will be required to keep you successful for decades into the future, even with new tech popping up every few years?

The words of Scott Howard aka ScLoHo

An Agenda

2011-09-19T06:00:00.000-04:00

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Know Why You Are Calling

Sounds obvious, but we have all been guilty of making a call just because it was on the list, having long since forgotten why we were calling. Or worse, never calling at all because you aren't sure of your reason.

Make it a habit to keep a note with each person's contact information about where you left off in your last contact and what is the appropriate next step.

The most productive calls are about something you know or suppose the other person wants from you, rather than something you want from them.

Source: Business coach C.J. Hayden

Shake It Up

2011-09-18T18:00:00.000-04:00

This weeks Sunday Seth:

The warning signs of defending the status quo

When confronted with a new idea, do you:

Consider the cost of switching before you consider the benefits?
Highlight the pain to a few instead of the benefits for the many?
Exaggerate how good things are now in order to reduce your fear of change?
Undercut the credibility, authority or experience of people behind the change?
Grab onto the rare thing that could go wrong instead of amplifying the likely thing that will go right?
Focus on short-term costs instead of long-term benefits, because the short-term is more vivid for you?
Fight to retain benefits and status earned only through tenure and longevity?
Embrace an instinct to accept consistent ongoing costs instead of swallowing a one-time expense?
Slow implementation and decision making down instead of speeding it up?
Embrace sunk costs?
Imagine that your competition is going to be as afraid of change as you are? Even the competition that hasn't entered the market yet and has nothing to lose...
Emphasize emergency preparation and the expense of a chronic and degenerative condition?

Calling it out when you see it might give your team the strength to make a leap.

Do Words Really Matter?

2011-09-18T12:00:00.000-04:00

25 years ago, I moved my family to Detroit, the Motor City.

It was a life changing decision for all of us. Detroit was also known for being the Murder Capital.

Their NBA team, the Pistons were the Bad Boys.

And I first picked up a book by Al Ries & Jack Trout, Positioning, which talked about branding.

I moved from being on the air and the programming side of radio to the advertising, marketing and branding world.

Each of those slogans I mentioned create images, or do the images create slogans?

These days Al Ries writes for AdAge:

Just Words? Rating the Republican Nominees on Their Slogans

It Seems None of Them Learned From Barack Obama's 2008 Positioning

How are the eight contenders doing in the race for the Republican Presidential nomination?

If you watched the first two debates, you might have an opinion, positive or negative, based on their debating skills. That's important.

But not as important as their "positioning" skills. Here is my opinion of the relative positioning skills of each potential candidate (from one to five stars.)

Michele Bachmann
According to MicheleBachmann.com . . . well, currently she doesn't seem to have a slogan, although just recently Ms. Bachmann was urging voters to "Join the fight to reclaim America."

Fight? Is that the right metaphor for a politician in today's environment? Is she proposing to liberate America the way the rebels have liberated Libya?

CNN

Besides, who was she proposing to fight? The Democrats?

Isn't that one of the major reasons voters are turned off by the political process? Every poll I have seen shows that they want politicians of both parties to work together, not to fight each other.

Well, you might be thinking, this was just a political slogan. Nobody takes these things literally. Exactly. You could say the same thing about most marketing slogans. Consumers don't take them literally; that's why they don't work.

"Take charge."

Does this slogan make you want to go out and sign up for an American Express card? I thought so.

Herman Cain
According to HermanCain.com . . . well, he doesn't seem to have a slogan, except for the rather innocuous "Cain 2012."

In his speeches, Mr. Cain emphasizes his business experience, especially the 10 years he spent running Godfather's Pizza. With his business background, you might think he would hammer the other wannabes (who all have political backgrounds) with a slogan like "Let's run America like a business."

Yet the key idea in Cain's "Vision for economic growth" is his 999 Plan. A 9% business tax, a 9% income tax and 9% national sales tax.

The 999 Plan is a brilliant idea, in my opinion, but the wrong strategy for a "business" candidate. What does a businessperson know about setting tax rates?

He should focus on fixing the the Post Office, Amtrak, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the dozens of other businesses the government is involved in.

America is fed up with politicians. Someday we are going to elect a business person to run the country like a business.

Newt Gingrich
According to Newt.org, he doesn't seem to have a slogan either, but he does have a "Jobs & Prosperity Plan."

Unlike Herman Cain, however, Newt Gingrich seldom mentions his successful businesses that might cause voters to trust him to create jobs. Rather, he emphasizes his political experience, not exactly a winning strategy in the current environment.

Jon Huntsman
According to Jon2012.com, his slogan is "H."

I assume it stands for Huntsman, but it might have been a better strategy to make the H stand for "honesty" or "health-care reform" or some other conceptual idea.

You can't really run for anything without a strong ego. Focusing on a big "H" is exactly an idea that would appeal to an ego-centric politician.

Years ago, we did strategy work for the governor of a large state. If you want to sell the governor something, his aide advised us, make sure he thinks it's his idea.

Late news flash: Jon Huntsman has now added a real slogan to his site. "No pledges, just solutions."

I think I like the "H" better.

Ron Paul
According to RonPaul2012.com, his slogan is "Restore America now."

Let's see now, Bachmann was trying to "reclaim" America and Ron Paul is trying to "restore" America.

What's the difference between reclaiming and restoring? I'm not too sure, but I know that neither idea is going to resonate with voters.

One of the most important conceptual ideas in marketing is being "different," not being better. Unless you can be different, your message is just dust in a windstorm.

Rick Perry
According to RickPerry.org, his slogan is: "Time to get America working again."

This is very powerful positioning because he has the credentials to validate the slogan: Since June 2009, more than 40% of all net new jobs in America have been created in Texas.

Sure, his opponents will try to debunk this track record. That's to be expected. Good slogans do two things for you: (1) They draw a raft of negative reactions from your opponents, and (2) They help to keep your campaign on track.

Negative reactions are not all bad. You want your opponents to spend all of their time talking about your program, not theirs.

Mitt Romney
According to MittRomney.com, his slogan is: "Believe in America."

How much negative reaction is a slogan like that going to generate? "You don't really believe in America, Mitt, you're a Mormon."

I don't think any of his opponents are going to raise this issue.

Mitt Romney was the front runner for the nomination, but he seems to have missed his opportunity. Instead of focusing on a single message, he has tried to cover everything.

A brand is like a garden hose with an adjustable nozzle. Turn it one way and out comes a powerful stream of water that could knock down a child. Turn it the other way and out comes a fine mist that wouldn't harm a butterfly.

When you lose your focus, you lose your power to influence people.

Rick Santorum
According to RickSantorum.com, his slogan is: "The courage to fight for America."

In this campaign, we have had two fighters for America: Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum.

Neither has a chance. No negative reaction from opponents and no positive connection with "fighting."

Now if David Petraeus ever runs for president, he could effectively use a slogan like this.

They never learn
I had thought the 2008 election of Barack Obama would send a message to political candidates everywhere.

You can't be elected today without two things: (1) a strong position, and (2) the credentials to support that position.

"Change we can believe in" was a strong position, made even stronger because it was used by the one candidate who seemed best able to execute the idea.

"Change" was a particularly appropriate for Barack Obama. He was black and the other candidates were white. He was young and the other candidates were older. He was virtually unknown while the other major candidates (Hillary Clinton and John McCain) were extremely well-known.

They never seem to learn from the past. Most of the current crop of Presidential hopefuls have missed the essence of what a good positioning strategy is all about.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Al Ries is chairman of Ries & Ries, an Atlanta-based marketing strategy firm he runs with his daughter Laura.

The Real Problem

2011-09-18T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip: Living with Problems

I'm often asked, "What's the biggest mistake you see salespeople make?" I answer, "Whatever they do to lose the sale!"

Seriously, there is one pattern I've witnessed with clients in my career. They sometimes assume that a customer with a problem is a customer who is committed to acting on the problem.

I tell this story in my seminars to make this point. A client of mine presented a new product to one of his customers and the customer said, "This is great. I can't stand the product we're using. I hate it." The salesperson worked up the sale value and figured he had a pretty good opportunity in front of him. He told his manager of this newfound opportunity and the manager, knowing this customer well, said, "Don't get too excited. The guy you called on has hated the product he uses for 10 years."

One of two things is likely going on:
-- The person who hates the product has no authority to change; or
-- He has no personal motivation to change that overrides his hating the product.

For example, if the new product costs twice as much as the product he hates he might choose to live with the problem and save money. Or, it could be a big hassle to change even to a better performing product and he concludes that right now the better performance is not worth the hassle to get it.

The salesperson's mistake is in thinking that "hates product" equals "committed to change." Fundamental to this story is the salesperson really doesn't know what the problem is.

If you or your salespeople stumble like my client did just remember that it isn't a problem until the customer says it is, and often there's more to the problem that they need to learn. Also, someone has to authorize making a change. The person who hates the product has to live with it if he's not the one authorized.

Source: Marketing consultant Mark Sellers

Classic Ad of the Week

2011-09-17T18:00:00.001-04:00

Moms Want to Connect

2011-09-17T12:00:00.001-04:00

from Mediapost recently:

Moms And How They Value Information: Yours

Moms are easily recognized: women with children. Of course, they vary in age, income, education and where they live, but today they all share a common experience: they are time starved. Advertisers recognized this years ago, identifying "the juggler," the now-familiar busy Mom who is great at multi-tasking, but could really use one more thing to make her life a little easier, or her home a little cleaner, or her family behave a little better.

Recognizing the Jugglers' priorities is one step. Understanding how to reach them as they make decisions about products whether rushing down a supermarket aisle, or clicking across the Internet, requires more.

What can a brand do to grab their attention and keep it long enough to change their minds or their buying habits?

The answer lies in how they value marketing information, whether presented in an ad or a web site. What value does it have and when do they need it? Most Moms want to be informed, but for some marketing information holds almost no value at all. For others, it's all about when they get it; can they claim the "First to Know" badge?

We recently took a look across two well-known Online Mom* segments -- Health Committed Moms and Brand Loyal Moms -- to discover if there are more effective ways for brand marketers to serve up marketing information.

Health Committed Moms (39% of online Moms) place an immense value on marketing information. Their focus on health would seem to demand it. Information is the most valuable thing a brand can offer. Health Committed Moms "are very likely to act on what they learn". Brands need to be careful with their own language and make sure they monitor the competition.

Brands have another more unique opportunity with Health Committed Moms. These Moms reward brands that help them win the "First to Know" badge. New product launches targeting these Moms should include tactics for positioning this information as exclusive and reaching Moms who are most likely to value and share this information.
But these Health Committed Moms with their First to Know badge surprisingly spend less time on "health" sites. In fact, if we were to recommend how to reach them online we'd be looking at fashion and beauty sites (82% more likely to spend time), as well as family and food (84% more likely time).

Now let's look at the easiest segment to categorize, but a challenge for any new brand, or want-to-be #1; Brand Loyal Moms (32% of Online Moms). As we expect, loyalists don't seek out information at all. They just stay with their brands. Can anything get them to change a brand? How about a shift in their own personal values? Admittedly, this is difficult to predict and seldom occurs, but right now something is going on.

For the last several years we have been watching as Brand Loyal Moms become increasingly concerned with the environment. In the last several months, there have been more Brand Loyal Moms on "green" sites than ever before. More time, in fact, than any other Mom's segment, including Health Conscious Moms.

Motivating Moms requires moving beyond the idea of the Juggler to an understanding of how they value marketing information, from ads to tweets. What they need and how those needs shift as their own values shift will give brand marketers a new edge, one they will need as the Juggler moves faster and faster.

*Resonate Networks' Online Moms sample size is approximately 35 million.

Bryan Gernert is CEO of Resonate.

Communication

2011-09-17T06:00:00.000-04:00

from Pat McGraw:

Chasing Customers Away: Lesson 1 and 2

Posted: 25 Aug 2011 08:36 AM PDT

You spend a lot of time, effort and money in order to attract, engage, convert and (hopefully) retain profitable customers – but sometimes little things go unnoticed and they can kill your business.

In the past couple of weeks, here are 2 (with a bonus) examples of how communications from employees can chase customers (prospective and current) away from your business.

Lesson #1
Here’s one example from Jeremiah Owyang:

Jeremiah Owyang – Yesterday 10:14 PM (edited) – Public
I’m getting more out of office messages from folks like this:

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

“FIRST LAST normally checks this email 1 time daily, at 10amPST/1pmEST.

If you need to get in touch before then or you are having a company
emergency, you will want to send a text message to 123-4567.

If you are canceling or changing a pre-scheduled meeting, please do this now.”

How many of your clients (prospective and current) would become former clients when your employees started leaving messages like this? (Hint: I would be looking for the competition’s number and making them my next call – I pay you to serve me so don’t tell me what to do. And if I have an emergency, I am not sending a text because I want to TALK TO YOU.)

Solution: Provide your employees with acceptable messages and perform periodic checks to ensure that they use them and follow procedures. Yes, it’s babysitting. But the older I get, the more amazed I am to see what some people will use and that the reasoning is “Hey, I’m busy and I want them to know it.”

Wrong. You want them to know you are there. You want them to know that you are easily accessible, ready to solve their problems and exceed their expectations. Grow up and stop playing martyr – we don’t hire or employ martyrs, we hire and employ people dedicated to customer satisfaction.

Lesson #2

I never thought I would become the anal retentive marketer but in the past year I have received way too many emails featuring cute script-like fonts that [a] I can’t read and [b] clearly communicate that the sender is way too focused on being cute vs. being understood.

How would you like to get all my emails in this font?

Solution: Same as lesson #1 – tell everyone that the anything from the company must use specific font(s). Then perform periodic checks.

And while I am thinking about it…

Lesson 2A

Provide standardized templates for email signatures – which prohibit personal affirmations, ‘funny’ jokes and motivational quotes. Focus on the following critical content:

Name
Title
Company Name
General 800#
Direct Line
Cell phone
Company URL (linked)

Final Take-away

It’s nice that people want to express personal creativity – but the communication is for the benefit of the reader, not the sender. Think of it from their perspective and ask “Do they need to know?”

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-16T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Automotive

Audi Shows America The Sordid Truth

by Karl Greenberg

Audi's new advertising campaign for the 2012 A6 sedan is showing us our roads. The effort is all about how lousy American roads are becoming as our infrastructure falls apart and the only thing in good supply are morons and the criminally insane who populate our highways in cars that shouldn't have gotten a pass at the DMV. ...Read the whole story >>

Restaurants

Darden Chains Cutting Calories, Sodium

by Karlene Lukovitz

The company signed an agreement with the Partnership for a Healthier America, the nonprofit that operates First Lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" initiative to end childhood obesity. Obama made an appearance at Darden's announcement event at an Olive Garden in Hyattsville, Md., yesterday. ...Read the whole story >>

Pharma

Kaiser Permanente Ads Encourage Better Health

by Tanya Irwin

Created by Warren, Mich.-based Campbell Ewald, the work is based on research that found the key to sticking with an exercise regimen is motivation, and that occurs when people activate three components, finding the reason, partner and activities that move them to a healthier lifestyle. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

From Gen Y To Seniors, Luxury Fashion Spend Rises

by Sarah Mahoney

When it comes to spending on luxury clothing and accessories, new research from American Express Business Insights shows surprising pockets of strength, from Gen Y all the way up to seniors. Interestingly, though, the biggest spenders in each demographic cut back in the first six months of the year. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Hyundai Launches Broad NCAA Football Strategy

by Karl Greenberg

Hyundai Motor America is keeping its "Big Voice in Big Places" strategy going with a new program around college football. The campaign puts Hyundai vehicles, branding, advertising and experiences at 15 universities' NCAA football games and on campus. ...Read the whole story >>

U.S. Beer Consumption Continues Decline

EBay Launches New Campaign

Mercedes-Benz Dealers Mark 125th Anniversary

Nearly 3/4 Of IPad Owners Are Gaming

McBride, Amtrak Hold Cross-Country Tour

NFL Launches Campaign For Women's Accessories

Former CEO Reflects On Changing Campbell's Culture

Cox Honors Latin Americans

Hain Celestial Developing Almond-Based Yogurt

The Ineffective Email

2011-09-16T12:00:00.000-04:00

The slow decline of print advertising has been accompanied by the growth of digital marketing.

Print advertising includes newspapers, magazines, phone books and junk mail.

I have seen some of my friends in the print business evolve into the digital world, but there are a few tips and "tricks" to keep in mind as outlines by MarketingProfs.com:

Five Email Design Must-Haves

The average email subscriber faces an inbox filled with clutter. Once she sorts through a variety of personal, professional and marketing messages, she won't look kindly on messy or incoherent email offers. "Without a well-crafted, clear and consistent design for your brand, your email is going nowhere in a hurry," says John Murphy in an article at MarketingProfs.

Here's how to avoid such a pitfall:

Use a good balance of text and images. Many spam filters consider an email's text-to-image ratio when deciding if it will reach a recipient's inbox. If there's too much text or too many images, it risks banishment to the spam folder.

Assume that images will be blocked. There's a good chance your subscribers will only see embedded images if they actively click on a link to display them. Because of this, the text in your message has to make sense even if its images don't show up.

Provide a back-up option for image-rich backgrounds. A number of clients—Gmail and Microsoft Outlook, for example—don't support background images. But Murphy says there's a workaround. "HTML allows both an image and a color to be coded in the same tag," he writes, "which means that if a mail client supports background images, the images will be displayed; if it doesn't, then the chosen color will appear as the email background instead."

Include a table of contents for lengthier messages. When an email has several sections, ease its navigation with a simple table of contents that links within the message to the topics a subscriber wants to read.

Remember a call to action. You've sent the message because you want your recipient to do something—so make sure he can.

The Po!nt: How it works matters as much as how it reads. Don't sabotage your strong content with weak email design.

Source: MarketingProfs.

Research

2011-09-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip:

Do your homework and learn all you can about your potential customers before you call on them. If it's a public company, get their annual report (even if you are calling on the local distributor). Get on the Internet, read the local media, read major publications...the more knowledge you have before you get in the door, the better opportunity you have to close the deal.

Source: Brandeis C. Hall, RAB, BHall@rab.com, (972)753-6786)

Thursday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-15T18:00:00.000-04:00

5 nights a week, I've been giving you this feature, or you can get it in your inbox like I do:

Retail

With Mega Coupons, Whole Foods Goes On Offensive

by Sarah Mahoney

While it probably won't be enough to shed its "Whole Paycheck" reputation, Whole Foods Market is going on a price offensive. First, its offer of $20 worth of groceries for $10 has become the fastest-selling coupon on LivingSocial. And, second, it's publicizing consumer research that claims it is actually cheaper than other supermarkets. ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

CAMY Study: Radio Alcohol Ads Still Reaching Young

by Karlene Lukovitz

New research by an alcohol advertising watchdog organization concludes that nearly one out of 11 radio ads for alcoholic beverages in 75 markets across the U.S. during 2009 failed to comply with the alcoholic beverage industry's voluntary standard for ad placements. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

BMW Hands Out Motor Oil Cologne To PGA Players

by Karl Greenberg

BMW Golf, is using what might be called aroma advertising and in-hotel floor graphics for lead and follow-up communications. The effort started a giveaway of bottles of "15w-50" motor oil-scented men's cologne to players finishing the Deutsche Bank Championship in Norton, Mass., over Labor Day weekend. ...Read the whole story >>

UPS Touts Service With Paper Dinosaurs, Montana

by Karl Greenberg

The new program, called UPS MyChoice, is meant to literally mark the end of missed-delivery slips, as it lets people choose when and where packages will be delivered prior to the first attempt. ...Read the whole story >>

Packaged Goods

Cat's Pride Promises 'Fresh' And 'Light'

by Tanya Irwin

The new formula -- which is 25% lighter than traditional scoopable litter -- blends calcium bentonite and sodium bentonite. The new patented formula could give the company, currently ranked fifth in market share, a boost in sales and brand recognition. ...Read the whole story >>

Opponents: Withdraw Kids' Food Marketing Guidelines

Walgreens Aims To Prevent Heart Attacks, Strokes

Shoppers Want One 'Green Score'

P&G, Duracell JV Aim For Charging Market

KBB.com: Q4 Should See Auto Sales Increase

Daily Deal Companies Here To Stay

New Ad Campaigns

2011-09-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

Our weekly update from Amy:

Denial hits the fan. The search engine of life. Protect your stuff. Let's launch!

FedEx launched four TV spots during the NFL season opener last Thursday that illustrate ways it helps businesses run smoother. First up: Who needs a competitive edge in a phone book anymore? An auto company chose the name AAAAAA Auto Repair so they'd appear first in phone books. An employee has a better idea: use FedEx to ship car parts faster. See it here. A FedEx driver might not have the life of a Hollywood screenplay, but he manages to save a life when he delivers an organ to a hospital. Having a supermodel-esque doctor retrieve the package is an added bonus. Watch it here. A boss decides to print on both sides of company paper in an effort to cut costs. This backfires when a woman asks about the executive compensation list, prompting the boss to eat the sheet. See it here. A man in the Witness Protection Program uses FedEx to print fliers, mugs and brochures with his face on them, all to draw attention to his small business. The Feds are forced to give him a third identity and crush his fledgling business. Watch it here. BBDO New York created the campaign.

Dodge created the "Search Engine for the Real World" to promote its 2012 Dodge Journey. In other words: step away from the computer and get outside and see the world. The Internet will be there when you return. The first TV spot shows a Journey on a journey through San Francisco and Route 66, surrounded by lakes, trees, and fields. The campaign has an added twist: three 2012 Dodge Journeys were hidden throughout the U.S., and each spot includes hints on where to look. Road trip, anyone? The "West Coast" ad launched Sept. 10, "Midwest" debuts Sept. 17 and "East" on Sept. 24. Additional clues can be found on Dodge's YouTube page. Each hidden car can be observed by a camera feed, just another way for explorers to gather clues. See it here. Get your motor running: the first Journey has already been found. A father and son from Nevada found the West Coast Journey in Hope Valley, Calif., in a mere 16 hours. I'm impressed. Wieden+Kennedy Portland created the campaign.

No one yells punch buggy in the latest ad for the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle. There are, however, countless high-fives, which are less painful. "It's Back" follows a man driving through a city in his sleek new Beetle. Whenever he encounters someone, they extend their hand for a high-five, whether it's construction workers, fellow drivers, a cop on a horse, a young girl and a puppy. Even the "don't walk" sign is secretly high-fiving him. The spot ends when the man encounters a huge group of cyclists. He extends his hand and waits. See the ad here, created by Deutsch Los Angeles.

Norton, known for its Internet security products and love of the Hoff, launched a TV, print and outdoor campaign about your "stuff": things like cell phone pictures, music and financial information. It's more than just stuff. If your computer crashed, what would happen to the stuff that's important and meaningful to you? Norton's brand campaign aims to highlight the company's offerings of content backup and live help when needed. An animated online video illustrates the importance of a person's stuff, whether it's pictures on a computer, music on an iPod, work spreadsheets and emails. Since "Stuff Happens," Norton can back you up and protect your stuff. See it here. A TV spot, running in Canada, shows various old pictures of women. The spots ends with the saved document name of "Wow_GrandmaWasAHottie.jpg" See it here. Print ads, running in Sports Illustrated, Newsweek, Time, ESPN, Fast Company and Shape, among others, also use ridiculously long file names to signify the importance of backing up online content. See them here, here and here. Leo Burnett Chicago created the campaign.

Royal Bank of Canada supports up-and-coming filmmakers -- because not everyone has Hollywood connections, like a well-respected uncle. The company launched three ads supporting its sponsorship of the Toronto International Film Festival. Each shows how easy life would be for young directors if they all had an "uncle in the biz." A director yearns for an aerial shot in "Helicopter." Fortunately, the man's uncle swings by and loans him his helicopter to film the scene. Watch it here. A young director pitches his script, only to have it rejected. His uncle emerges from behind a wall, skims the script, and convinces the agent to reconsider making the movie. See it here. A woman screens her film to a theatre filled with a handful of people. Just before the movie starts, her uncle appears with all his wealthy friends who are looking to buy a film. Watch it here. BBDO Toronto created the campaign, directed by Mark Gilbert of Untitled Films.

Al Gore brings us reality TV, but it's not the kind of mindless entertainment we're used to. The Climate Reality Project is running all day today to educate viewers about climate change. Dubbed "24 Hours of Reality," the event will be broadcast online in all 24 time zones and in13 languages. One TV ad features the voice of Al Gore coupled with images of floods, mudslides and copy about oil and coal companies wielding money and power to deflect the reality of global climate change. See it here. Denial hits the fan in the next ad, seen here. And by denial, I mean poop. A miniature oil rig starts a chain reaction that sends a handful of poop flying into a fan, splattering a globe. M ss ing P eces and Alex Bogusky at Fearless Cottage produced the ads.

Jimmy Dean's latest TV spot for its breakfast sandwiches is "Low Cloud," about a cloud whose head is in a fog. The sun is driving to work and encounters the low-flying cloud. Turns out, he didn't have breakfast. Sun whips up a Jimmy Dean sandwich from the food truck he drives, and within seconds, the cloud is no longer gray and is flying high. Watch the ad here, created by TBWA/Chiat/Day Los Angeles.

Isaiah Mustafa, come back soon. The "Sea Captain" scares me. Old Spice launched a new TV and print campaign for its Red Zone deodorant, body spray and body wash that encourages men to channel their inner sea captain or rock star. The "Smell Better Than Yourself" campaign allows men to smell like a sea captain with washboard abs, who oozes gold coins from his pockets while punching a sea creature in the face. Watch it here. A print ad, "Rocker," shows a man in a library who is half-nerd and half-rockstar waiting to break free. See it here. Wieden+Kennedy Portland created the campaign.

Random iPhone App of the week: Do you love random factoids of knowledge, as I do? Then you'll enjoy the newly launched Weird but True app. Based on a random fact generator inspired by the National Geographic Kids book series of the same name, Weird but True offers 300 factoids for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. All you need to do is shake or swipe your device for a random fact. Did you know that New Zealand has more sheep than people, or that parachutes were invented before airplanes? My favorite factoid involves rain. You will get 50% wetter running in the rain than you will standing still. Who knew? The app costs $1.99 in the App Store.

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

Clarify

2011-09-15T06:00:00.000-04:00

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Remember Who You're Talking To

When meeting with a prospective customer, make your conversational tone one of respect. Suppose we carelessly utter to the prospect, "Do you know what I mean?" He or she just heard from us: "How could you possibly disagree?" A more respectful offering is, "I want to be sure I express this properly; so may I clarify?"

How about when the buyer poses the same question to us? Seize the opportunity to clarify the exchange of ideas by responding this way: Look into the buyer's eyes and state inquisitively, "No, I do not quite understand. Could you tell me more?" This may also persuade the customer to state his/her position in a way that might reveal critical motivations.

Source: Sales consultant/trainer Robert Menard

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-14T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Hospitality

Marriott's Fairfield Inn Says 'Let's Get It Done'

by Tanya Irwin

Kathleen Coney, director, brand marketing, Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott, shares some insight with Marketing Daily about the brand's return to TV advertising after a six-year hiatus. The campaign, featuring the tagline "Let's Get it Done," includes home video ads, cable TV placements, online video and paid search. TV will run in both 30- and 15-second versions as well as a Spanish-language version. ...Read the whole story >>

Q&A: Retailers, Relax. It Will Be A Decent Holiday

by Sarah Mahoney

A funny thing happened on the way to the fourth quarter: Instead of the gradually building economic recovery most retailers had been anticipating, lousy economic headlines cast a cloud over Christmas before they had a chance to put out their Halloween candy. But not everyone is downbeat. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Viewers Give Thumbs Up To Sept. 11 TV Ads

by Karl Greenberg

Ace Metrix, which rated some 14 such Sept. 11-themed ads, found that Budweiser's ad featuring its Clydesdale horses was the most effective of all the commemorative ads, and also one of the most effective ads so far this quarter. The average Ace Score for beer ads was 478 on a scale of 0-950. Budweiser's spot was 665. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Differences Abound Among Affluent Consumers

by Karl Greenberg

According to Ipsos Mendelsohn, in 2010, 5% of affluent households owned an e-reader. This year, 14% own one. Last year, 33% owned a smartphone versus 43% this year. This year, affluent consumers spent, on average, 30.3 hours on the Internet versus 25.3 hours last year. ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

Using Humor To Sell Water Conservation

by Karlene Lukovitz

The "Wasting Water Is Weird" campaign, from Shelton Group in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency's WaterSense program, uses "Rip the Drip" -- a personification of the sort of oddball you wouldn't want to encounter in public, never mind in your bathroom or kitchen. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Holiday News: Shoppers More Anxious Over Economy

by Aaron Baar

According to The NPD Group's monthly Economy Tracker survey, two-thirds of U.S. consumers believe the U.S. is headed for bad times (with 59% saying it was headed toward recession), and that those bad times are going to last indefinitely. In addition, only 12% of consumers polled in August felt the U.S. government could do anything to straighten things out. ...Read the whole story >>

Life Insurance Ownership Lowest Among Hispanics

Best Buy Profits, Sales Fall

Verizon To Roll Out Unlimited Prepaid Plan

Christmas 2011 Forecast

2011-09-14T12:00:00.000-04:00

I know, I know.

Halloween and Thanksgiving are still a month or two away.

But let's look at the biggest shopping season and start preparing now:

Many Retail Industry Analysts Predict a Good Holiday Season

As retailers head into the all-important holiday season, they have reason to be optimistic: Months of solid sales are widely expected to carry through to the end of the year, when shoppers are most likely to open their wallets.

Positive holiday performance could have a far-reaching effect. With consumer spending accounting for about 70% of the nation's economic activity, robust sales could breathe life into what has been a sluggish year so far for the broader economy.

Many industry analysts are predicting a good -- but not great -- holiday season.

The chief economist for the International Council of Shopping Centers, a major retail trade group, estimates that sales will rise 3.5% for November and December combined. Last year, sales during the same period beat expectations, rising 4.4% in what industry analysts called the best holiday results since 2006.

"It's a time when we do the greatest amount of our business, but it is also a season that defines retailers," said Jim Sluzewski, a spokesman at Macy's Inc., which last year saw 28% of its sales in the last two months of the year.

After the recession-plagued 2008 holiday season, the worst in more than four decades, retailers say they've become much more savvy about confronting economic challenges. They're not ordering too much inventory and they're making sure that prices are budget-friendly.

"We are well prepared," Sluzewski said. "Our business is very flexible and we have a lot of ways to adjust our business no matter what happens."

Retailers, which ring up as much 40% of their annual sales during the last two months of the year, also are relying on a tried-and-true rule: Consumers love to splurge when the holidays roll around.

Shopper Deven Ronnquist, 63, was already keeping an eye out for holiday gifts for her family on a trip to the Glendale Galleria in California recently, setting a loose gift budget of $3,000.

"We have a tradition of spending way too much -- we just have a ring of presents around the tree," the La Crescenta administrative assistant said. "I'm going to work hard to pay down some of my credit cards in the meantime."

The start of holiday shopping comes amid skittishness over the volatile stock market, stubbornly high unemployment and tight credit that has constrained business growth. Strong holiday sales could provide much-needed momentum, said Michael Dart, a retail strategist at consulting firm Kurt Salmon.

"If we have a solid holiday season and there's a sense that the consumer is resilient...I think you get more bullish on hiring and it could start to move the employment rate," he said. "It could ease a lot of the anxiety that permeates every business and permeates the consumer psyche right now."

Retail analysts say the key segment to watch will be middle-income consumers. Wealthy Americans have spent freely on luxuries such as designer handbags, jewelry and watches, and lower-income shoppers seeking bargains have led to steady sales increases at discount chains, dollar stores and warehouse clubs.

Analysts say the back-to-school selling season, which often provides a hint of how the holidays will fare, has so far produced solid results. Despite stock market turmoil and Hurricane Irene, sales at major chain stores rose 4.4% year over year in August, the key month of the period, according to Thomson Reuters' tally of 23 retailers.

"We've been seeing consistent spending occurring even in discretionary sectors," said Michael McNamara, vice president of research and analysis at data service MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse. "This is just a consistent thing that has not correlated with the deterioration in consumer confidence. It's been an interesting phenomenon in 2011."

Retailers are still keeping their biggest plans under wraps, but they have been busy preparing for the holidays all year: ordering merchandise, designing festive window displays and special holiday catalogs, and planning Black Friday promotions.

"Target begins preparing for the holiday season right after Christmas," said Cary Strouse, senior vice president of stores for Target Corp., which recently announced four exclusive designer partnerships that will be in stores in time for the holidays, including a fashion line with Gwen Stefani.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the nation's largest retailer, will be adding to its holiday selection this year, including stocking more Christmas villages and outdoor lawn decor. The company said its focus would be on offering the lowest prices to its shoppers.

"We know our customers are feeling budget strains, and we are committed to helping ease that strain," said Tara Raddohl, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman.

Jodi Odell, 46, said she intends to spend big for the holidays even though she has been trimming expenses because business has been slow at the architecture and design firm she and her husband run.

"My husband and I have already talked about it," the Encino resident said recently as she shopped at the Americana at Brand in Glendale. "We plan it out in September. The kids give me their lists early and I will have it all knocked out by November. It's therapeutic when nothing else is going well."

Although Odell won't be cutting back on gifts for her four children, she and her husband, Otis, will only do stockings for each other this year, she said.

Still, she's hoping for a little blue box.

"Tiffany," she said, "fits very well in a stocking."

(Source: Los Angeles Times, 09/05/11)

The Purpose of a Proposal

2011-09-14T06:00:00.000-04:00

From Tom Searcy:

Proposals don't sell or close deals, they put on paper what has already been agreed to and answer "how."

Before you send a proposal to someone, ask yourself, "Am I selling the deal with this proposal or am I explaining the details of what has already been agreed to?" If you are selling with it, you are wasting your time. Proposals are not Christmas presents where the recipient opens them to find a surprise.

Secure a verbal agreement on what your company is going to do, as well as the general price range, before you go through the trouble of writing a proposal.

Want to read more about how to land the big sale? Read the Hunting Big Sales Blog.

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-13T18:00:00.000-04:00

When I glanced at the headlines I thought the last line said toilets, not tablets.

Click & read carefully:

DHL Launches 'International Specialists' Campaign

by Aaron Baar

DHL is out to show business leaders that it knows the international world better than any of its competitors in a new advertising and marketing campaign that touts the company as the "International Specialists" who operate at "the speed of yellow." ...Read the whole story >>

1-800-Dentist Puts Teeth In $50 Million Campaign

by Tanya Irwin

The spots use humorous real-life vignettes involving friends, family and co-workers to show that 1-800-Dentist is the best and most reliable way to find the perfect dentist. The spots can also be viewed on the Los Angeles-based company's YouTube channel. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

Nike Auctions Off Marty McFly Shoes For Parkinson's

by Sarah Mahoney

The Nike MAG shoes rely on an "electroluminescent outsole, space-age materials and a rechargeable internal battery good for 3,000 hours," brags the foundation's website. "And while they are not recommended for playing sports, these highly limited shoes will very likely command attention wherever they are worn." ...Read the whole story >>

Beverages

Gatorade, NBA Take Athlete Pitch On The Road

by Karl Greenberg

Gatorade and the National Basketball Association have launched a road show called the "Gatorade NBA Training Center." It's not a physical place, but a series of events meant to attract athletic consumers with a free fitness evaluation with guidance on how to live a healthy lifestyle. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

CPG Loyalty: Sports Drinks Among Strongest

by Karlene Lukovitz

Many of the categories showing the largest gains already had high loyalty percentages -- demonstrating that "true loyalty can survive even prolonged economic upheaval," says SymphonyIRI Times & Trends editor Susan Viamari." ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

NASCAR Car Washes To Open, Starting In Chicago

by Karl Greenberg

The company last year got exclusive rights to use the NASCAR logo to market car washes across North America and the U.S. Territories. The first of several of the NASCAR Car Washes will open in the Chicagoland area in Romeoville on Thursday. ...Read the whole story >>

McDonald's' Sales Growth Slows A Bit In August

New Amsterdam Gin Signs With Falcons

Triumph Gets New Agency

Honda Back On Ice For Three More Years

GameStop To Offer Branded Tablets

Social Media, not Just for Kids

2011-09-13T12:00:00.001-04:00

My oldest daughter celebrated her 28th birthday this week.

I recall when I was 28 and wonder where the past 23 years went. But I don't wonder who is using social media.

Baby Boomers like myself are using it and with our buying power, smart companies are the ones that figure out how to use social media to interact with us.

From Mediapost:

Don't Think Gray, Think Green

I signed up for Facebook five years ago and today spend more than 20 hours a week there and on Twitter and LinkedIn interacting with friends, professional contacts, other moms and 20 of my favorite brands. I read and write blog posts. I have a smartphone. And -- surprise, surprise! -- I'm a Baby Boomer.

While many advertisers have caught on, many still believe Boomers -- adults aged 45 to 54 -- are digital laggards who lack high-speed internet access, online shopping savvy, digital cameras, DVRs and cars with GPS systems. In fact, according to Forrester Research's annual benchmark tech study, adults my age now spend more money on technology than any other age group. We lead the pack when it comes to purchasing e-readers. The iPad? We love it. Don't dare call us old and set in our ways.

So should advertisers try and reach us on social sites? You bet. Baby Boomers control more than 50% of the discretionary spending power and pay for 80% of all leisure travel. We also like to play games and product deals online. We strive to look and feel our best. And, according to Social Code, Facebook users over the age of 50 are 28.2% more likely to click an advertisement than 18 to 29 year-old users.

We are a generation that likes to get things done. Social sites give us a forum for voicing political views and for supporting causes that are dear to us. And Boomers who are empty-nesters now have the time to support them. Meanwhile, social dating sites have given widowed and divorced Boomers a whole new way to build meaningful relationships.

So, what ad content is best for Boomers? It needs to be intuitive and easy to navigate. And above all, advertisers should focus on a quality product and customer service. Here are four great examples of marketers who understand what Boomers want:

NBC Digital is doing a terrific job of reaching Boomers through their Life Goes Strong channels, an online destination for the active over-50 crowd. Its verticals represent the audience's passion points, from health to technology to style. The age perspective is downplayed, as the site is focused on generating content that Boomers are genuinely interested in, and delivering this content in an entertaining way (some good examples are "The Ugliest Houses in America" or "Being Addicted to Words with Friends"). Every article is shareable and can be commented on.

Harley-Davidson is another brand that has been doing an excellent job reaching Boomers through social media. Its target demographic of riders over 50 cherishes two things: community and adventure. This company puts mobile social at the heart of its marketing efforts. Riders carrying around mobile phones can connect with other riders, learn about special events, and share their adventures on social sites. Rather than phasing out its older consumers, Harley- Davidson provides them with a voice they can use to build the brand with their stories and opinions.

Socially savvy Boomers are transforming the healthcare industry, and pharmaceutical pioneer Johnson & Johnson is taking note. Its extensive social network includes a number of blogs, a robust YouTube channel, an active Facebook page, and a Twitter feed. The diversity of this company's content runs the gamut from interesting historical tidbits about the company, to touching videos about its efforts in developing countries, to multiple platforms where J&J representatives can quickly respond to comments and questions about their products -- from a generation that is becoming more and more acclimated to seeking customer service through social media.

The Dove Movement for Self-Esteem campaign won us over with its portrayal of women with all their flaws, and it continues to choose topics that are ageless with its "Who Inspired You" initiative.

The brands that continue to deny the influence of Boomers on social media will lose out on a marketing opportunity that continues to grow. Instead of seeing gray, brands should green.

Holly Pavlika is managing director at Big Fuel.

Learn A Few

2011-09-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

Lessons from former clients:

Daily Sales Tip: Getting Feedback from Former Customers

Getting feedback from defectors is important because of the unique insights it provides.

Your former customers know which areas you need to improve in order to get their business back. And your former customers can also give you very specific reasons why they left -- a view of your business you can't get anywhere else.

Source: Don Peppers, founding partner of Peppers & Rogers Group.

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-12T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & Read:

Beverages

Heineken Takes Spot To Theaters, Partners With IFC

by Tanya Irwin

The campaign appeals to the upscale, progressive 'man of the world,'" Lesya Lysyj, chief marketing officer, Heineken USA, tells Marketing Daily. "This feeling of worldliness and assurance resonates with our target consumers around the globe, and we feel the cinema provides a unique and superior medium through which to tell our story to a captive audience." ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

For Stein Mart, It's 'Love At First Find'

by Aaron Baar

"We have such a loyal and passionate customer base that they really want to reach out to non-Stein Mart customers and get them to join the fold," Glori Katz, Stein Mart's senior vice president of marketing and advertising, tells Marketing Daily. "It's using customers in a way that we haven't used them before." ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Brand Keys: Amazon Is 2011's #1 Loyalty Leader

by Karlene Lukovitz

"Brand loyalty has always been primarily driven by emotion," points out Brand Keys founder and President Robert Passikoff, adding that this year's rankings again demonstrate that "consumers seek to emotionally connect with brands that actually stand for something, and to connect with each other, too." ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Dodge Touts 2012 Journey By Hiding It

by Karl Greenberg

With the 2012 model of Dodge Journey rolling into dealerships, the company is giving the vehicle its first real coming-out party with a campaign that Jason Russ, head of Dodge advertising, says will be a bit like an automotive "Truman Show" (in that movie, if you recall, people were so addicted to the reality show about Truman that they never missed an episode.) ...Read the whole story >>

Sports

NFL Players Vie For Marketability In New Study

by Karl Greenberg

Now that the NFL is back on the gridiron, who are the players with the most endorsement firepower? Drew Brees and Peyton Manning are, according to new data from Omnicom Group's promotional agency, Dallas-based The Marketing Arm. ...Read the whole story >>

Fiat Doblò To Enter N.A. Market Under Ram Brand

Subaru Gets Manager Of Corp. Communications

Optimedia Wins Pizza Hut Media Account

NFL Launches Women's Apparel

Crown Imports Chooses Goodby

Accuracy in ROI

2011-09-12T12:00:00.000-04:00

Last week on the Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, I shared the story of using technology to modernize a retail operation.

I admit, when I moved from the radio business to the web world this year, one of the reasons was the ability to measure with accuracy the Return On Investment of the actions we do online.

But you have to connect all the dots.....

The Truth?

Recently I was doing some exploratory work at a car dealership and was amazed at how they manage inventory, and their internet presence.

They can tell how many people have visited their website, which vehicles they looked at, what links they clicked on, etc.

I mean, this is one slick technology rich business.

But there was one part that stuck out as a fatal flaw.

The final tracking device.

They hand the customer a piece of paper with several options of how they heard about the dealership and ask them to circle one.

At first I thought using pictures and drawing a circle was clever. It is.

But.

It's not accurate.

It relies on a customer to recall something that they really don't care about.

And this type of tracking is highly unreliable.

If you have the technology to track but then end up with a flawed link, then you better find a better way, or at least realize that you're dealing with bad data.

The words of Scott Howard aka ScLoHo

Training Time?

2011-09-12T06:00:00.000-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip: Practice Makes Perfect

Sales managers very often do not get the training they need before becoming a sales manager. Likewise, very few sales managers conduct ongoing training sessions with their sales team.

Selling requires cognitive skills as well as practical skills, which cannot be developed without practice. When was the last time the sales managers at your company conducted sales practice? I have frequently observed sales managers who intend to start a series of sales practice exercises; however, they are dissuaded from this plan by their salespeople who express dislike or discomfort with the idea of practicing.

Top-performing sales forces conduct sales practice on a regular basis. They have a focus on training and developing the skills and process of their team on an ongoing basis. I recommend that all sales managers conduct sales practice on a weekly basis. This will allow them to inspect the quality of presentations, processes, territory management, account management, etc., of each of their salespeople in a safe and nurturing environment.

Practicing one's sales skills in front of a customer is analogous to practicing football during the Super Bowl. Obviously, it is too late to practice when you are in the game.

Source: Sales consultant Gil Cargill

Beyond 9/11

2011-09-11T18:00:00.001-04:00

Today is a day of reflection for many of us in the United States. Most of us know where we were 10 years ago when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center.

We look back on the monumental occasions and often let the other, less noticeable events fade away.

Last weekend as I was skimming my emails I found a piece from Seth Godin that reminds us to pay more attention.

May it motivate both of us to make some positive changes in the week ahead:

The Sunday Seth:

Not fade away

Most partnerships don't end up in court.

Most friendships don't end in a fight.

Most customers don't leave in a huff.

Instead, when one party feels underappreciated, or perhaps taken advantage of, she stops showing up as often. Stops investing. Begins to move on.

No, I'm not going to sue you. Yes, I'll probably put my best efforts somewhere else.

Just because there are no firestorms on the porch doesn't mean you're doing okay. More likely, there are relationships out there that need more investment, quiet customers who are unhappy but not making a big deal out of it. They're worth a lot more than the angry ones.

Q R Coding

2011-09-11T12:00:00.000-04:00

There was a little debate earlier this year among some friends of mine about QR codes.

Will they catch on?

Will businesses use them?

Will people scan them?

Will they be a fad or trend?

and my favorite quote from an advertising agency, "QR Codes are Stupid."

Since I am in the early adopter category when it comes to certain tech and marketing ideas, I need to remind myself to be patient and help others when they are ready to dip their toe and plunge into these worlds.

Here's an update on QR code usage from Mediapost:

QR Codes Best in Magazines, Newspapers & Packaging

A new comScore study on mobile QR (Quick Response) code scanning readable by smartphones, found that 14 million mobile users in the U.S., representing 6.2% of the total mobile audience, scanned a QR code on their mobile device. A mobile user that scanned a QR code was more likely to be male (60.5% of code scanning audience), skew toward ages 18-34 (53.4%) and have a household income of $100k or above (36.1%).

Mark Donovan, comScore senior vice president of mobile "QR codes demonstrate just one of the ways in which mobile marketing can effectively be integrated into existing media and marketing campaigns... "

A demographic analysis of those who scanned a QR code with their mobile phone in June revealed an audience that was more likely to be male, young to middle-age and upper income. More than half of all QR code scanners were between the ages of 18-34. Those between the age of 25-34 were twice as likely as the average mobile user to engage in this behavior, while 18-24 year olds were 36% more likely than average to scan. More than 1 of every 3 QR code scanners had a household income of at least $100,000, representing both the largest and most over-represented income segment among the scanning audience.

Demographic Profile QR Code Scanning Audience (Total Mobile Audience U.S. Age 13+)
Audience	QR Code Audience (000)	% of QR Code Audience	Index (Code Scanners)
Total Audience: Age 13+	14,452	100.0%	100
Gender:
Male	8,743	60.5%	125
Female	5,709	39.5%	76
Age:
13-17	1,076	7.4%	108
18-24	2,402	16.6%	136
25-34	5,317	36.8%	211
35-44	2,827	19.6%	117
45-54	1,798	12.4%	68
55-64	594	4.1%	28
65+	437	3.0%	22
Income:
<$25k	1,193	8.3%	54
$25k to <$50k	2,597	18.0%	79
$50k to <$75k	2,756	19.1%	96
$75k to <$100k	2,689	18.6%	125
$100k+	5,217	36.1%	13
Source: comScore MobiLens, June 2011

The most popular source of a scanned QR code was a printed magazine or newspaper, with nearly half scanning QR codes from this source. Product packaging was the source of QR code scanning for 35.3% of the audience, while 27.4% scanned a code from a website on a PC and 23.5% scanned codes from a poster/flyer/kiosk.

Source of Scanned QR Code (Total Mobile Audience U.S. Age 13+)
	*QR Code Audience (000)*	*% of QR Code Audience (Mult. Sources)*
Total Audience: Scanned QR code with mobile phone	14,452	100.0%
Printed magazine or newspaper	7,138	49.4%
Product packaging	5,101	35.3%
Website on PC	3,957	27.4%
Poster or flyer or kiosk	3,393	23.5%
Business card or brochure	1,940	13.4%
Storefront	1,850	12.8%
TV	1,693	11.7%
Source: comScore MobiLens, June 2011

Among mobile users who scanned a QR code on their mobile devices in June, 58.0% did so from their home, while 39.4% did so from a retail store and 24.5% did so from a grocery store.

Location When Scanning QR Code (Total Mobile Audience U.S. Age 13+)
	*QR Code Audience (000)*	*% of QR Code Audience (Mult. Sources)*
Total Audience: Scanned QR code with mobile phone	14,452	100.0%
At home	8,382	58.0%
Retail store	5,688	39.4%
Grocery store	3,546	24.5%
At work	2,844	19.7%
Outside or on public transit	1,827	12.6%
Restaurant	1,095	7.6%
Source: comScore MobiLens, June 2011

For additional information from comScore, please visit here, or for additional insights into QR Code usage in Europe, please visit the comScore Data Mine here.

A few words on Coaching

2011-09-11T06:00:00.001-04:00

from RAB.com:

Daily Sales Tip: One-Size-Fits-All Coaching

One of the key pitfalls for sales managers is when they take the "one-size-fits-all" approach to coaching.

How many times have we witnessed a sales rep working on auto pilot? This is the rep doing the same sales pitch to each customer and delivering the message in the same way. As coaches, we fail to see when we go into auto pilot, taking the same approach with each rep.

Do you ever find yourself coaching all your reps the same way? Your feedback to each rep is the same? If so, you have fallen into the rut of "one-size-fits-all" coaching.

Coaching differs from training. Training is about having everyone learn the same information or skills. Coaching, on the other hand, is about diagnosing each rep's particular area for improvement. It is about adapting your coaching style to the individual and about developing individualized development plans.

Coaching is a one-to-one sport. It is about growing individuals and helping them to develop their full potential.

Source: Sales coach Steven Rosen

Classic Ad of the Week

2011-09-10T18:00:00.000-04:00

9/11/11

2011-09-10T12:00:00.001-04:00

A look at how some businesses are handling tomorrow:

Marketers Searching for Ways to Observe September 11 Anniversary

As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, marketers like The Home Depot, General Motors and American Express are struggling with the best way to connect with the tens of millions of consumers who will observe the day, without appearing to be either exploitive or insensitive.

The Home Depot is the latest, just announcing that its foundation is working with The Mission Continues and rock band 3 Doors Down to introduce a "Celebration of Service" campaign, an effort to enhance the lives of U.S. military veterans. The campaign kicks off on Sept. 11, and is scheduled to run through Veterans Day Nov. 11, addressing some 200 service projects that it says are directly aimed at "improving homes, facilities and community centers where veterans live and receive services."

Last month, the General Motors Foundation and Chevrolet donated $250,000 to the Travis Manion Foundation, to help increase participation around the country in the 9/11 Heroes Run. And companies like American Express, Chase and Best Buy are key supporters of the 9/11 Day of Service. That group, founded by families of 9/11 victims, reports that nearly 70% of Americans say they are interested in paying tribute somehow on the 10th anniversary.

"I haven't seen many active efforts yet, but I think a lot of companies are really grappling with this question," Sarah Kerkian, an insights supervisor at Cone, Inc., a cause-related marketing agency in Boston, told Marketing Daily, adding that she anticipates more efforts from major brands in the coming days. "These will likely center around employee service, but I'm sure we will see a few consumer-facing efforts, too."

The Home Depot effort, for example, in addition to awarding $9 million in grants, invites customers to contribute by purchasing a Celebration of Service-themed gift card from the retailer between Sept. 11 and Veterans Day. It says 5% of the value placed on these cards is to be donated to The Home Depot Foundation to support nonprofit organizations serving the housing needs of veterans. Kerkian says that effort is likely to click with core customers because of the Atlanta-based company's long association with veterans' causes. (Back in April, it also pledged a three-year, $30 million initiative to address veterans' housing needs.)

But appearing overly promotional, she points out, can backfire: New York Sports Clubs recently touted a $20-a-month-for-life offer for First Responders that got spanked in some local media. "However, as the fine print notes, the offer is only good till September 11th and only applicable to police, soldiers, and EMTs who are currently employed," notes blogger Bucky Turco, on Animalnewyork.com. "Anyone who worked in the rubble but has since retired is ineligible."

"I don't think it's necessarily taboo anymore to link events to 9/11, particularly on this significant anniversary," Kerkian adds. "But I do think there's an incredibly high level of sensitivity and care being paid to make sure efforts are in good taste."

(Source: Marketing Daily, 08/25/11)

Prospecting in 2011

2011-09-10T06:00:00.000-04:00

from my email:

Daily Sales Tip: Prospecting the Right Way

Unless we have an all-referral business, we all have to prospect to generate new business opportunities. To do that effectively, follow these simple tips and watch your results improve:

1. Ask for permission. Ask if they are open to talking with you now. If they are, ask why they are open. If they aren't open to talking with you now, move on.

2. If you've engaged the prospect in a conversation, ask if your follow-up would be welcomed or an intrusion.

3. If your follow-up will be welcomed, ask when your follow-up would be appropriate. When you arbitrarily set the follow-up date, you have no idea what is on the prospect's plate and you have no idea of their priorities. If you have secured permission to follow up and then asked deeper questions about when, you start to align yourself with their priorities and you don't become a pest.

Most salespeople get frustrated waiting for the prospect to respond. Then they get nervous and tend to start stalking. If you let the prospect set the timetable for follow-up, not only are you building respect and rapport, you are also reducing the amount of time you spend stalking the prospect and losing rapport. You'll also reduce your frustration levels and the number of voicemails you leave for prospects who don't return them.

4. Ask for permission to send business articles that apply to the prospect's problem. Doing that is as simple as this: "I'm constantly staying on top of industry trends and issues. If, between now and the time I am supposed to follow up, I find an article or an idea that might make sense for you, would you be open to receiving that?"

Securing permission to send articles and ideas gives you permission to "market" to them. Giving them something they can use, giving them something of value instead of "just checking in" sets you apart from everyone else. Now your follow-up is about them, and not about you. And when you voicemail them you can insert a fact the prospect can use, thereby adding value.

5. If they are open to receiving articles or ideas, ask them to tell you more about what they are looking for. That will give you tremendous insight into their priorities and how they think. It will also help you qualify the prospect in a different way and help set yourself apart from the rest of the herd.

6. Use reverse psychology. When leaving your voicemail, don't say "Just checking in..blah blah blah!" Instead, try "I found this fact (or I had this idea) and wanted to make sure you had it." Then, leave your name and number, but don't ask them to call you back.

Everyone says, "Call me back." If the prospect is interested, they'll call. If they aren't interested, they won't. So don't ask. Calling back is understood. If you've piqued their interest, they will pick up the phone, or email you, and further engage. Telling the prospect to call you back won't make them contact you if they aren't planning to already. So don't bother. You'll be less frustrated and the prospect will feel less guilty.

Prospecting today has changed. You've got to do the things that get prospects' attention and add value. If you are just checking in, your prospects are checking out. Prospect the right way.

Source: Sales author/trainer Ryan Sarti

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

2011-09-09T18:00:00.000-04:00

Click & read:

Beverages

PepsiCo CFO Talks Pricing, 'Stagflation'

by Karlene Lukovitz

The U.S. and other developed markets have moved into "stagflationary" mode over the past six months, and the lack of growth has created a pricing dilemma for CPG companies, Hugh Johnston, PepsiCo's CFO, told attendees at a Barclays Capital investor conference this week. ...Read the whole story >>

Research

Women's Anxiety At 'Unprecedented' Levels

by Sarah Mahoney

Some 57% of the women included in the survey say managing household finances is their biggest concern; when asked the same question two years ago, they were most worried about not having enough time. And compared to men, women are 21% more likely to feel anxious about the future, and 44% more likely to feel a great deal of stress in their lives. ...Read the whole story >>

Electronics

Phone Satisfaction Rests On Design, Dimensions

by Aaron Baar

"Design is very key, clearly. It's not really surprising the newest, latest, greatest technology impacts scores; that's always been the case. But you have to have the right combination. If you have a lightweight phone, but the thickness is not where it should be, it can affect satisfaction," says Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless services at J.D. Power. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Cadillac Racing To Bring Foodies, Cars Together

by Karl Greenberg

It's about the experience. Cadillac, which has staked out a performance positioning and upped its commitment to racing, is getting consumers into its vehicles with several simultaneous programs that involve culinary elements, racetracks, golfing -- and of course, test drives. ...Read the whole story >>

Automotive

Downtown Auto Show Comes To New York

by Karl Greenberg

The New York Motorexpo will actually be the fourth iteration of an auto show program launched in London in 1996 by the Aspect Partnership with London's Canary Wharf Group. Besides New York and London, Motorexpo now does similar shows in Los Angeles and Toronto under the aegis of Brookfield Office Properties. ...Read the whole story >>

Financial Services

ING Awards $100,000 To Combat Childhood Obesity

by Tanya Irwin

The grants support a minimum of an eight-week running program that will conclude with a running event. Schools will receive $1,000 immediately from the ING Community Fund, with additional funds granted based on the participation in the program. ...Read the whole story >>

Retail

QB Tom Brady Kicks Off Uggs Effort

by Sarah Mahoney

A spot featuring the glamour-puss quarterback, shot mostly from the knees down, is scheduled to break on Monday Night Football when Brady's New England Patriots play their first regular season game against the Miami Dolphins. ...Read the whole story >>

VW Involved In New York's Fashion's Night Out

AT&T To Offer Xperia Play

T.G.I. Friday's Expands Retail With Entrées for One

Kohl's Rolls On With J.Lo/Marc Anthony Ads

Daddy, What's a Newspaper?

2011-09-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

I read last week that newspaper advertising has declined for the 20th straight quarter. That's 5 years for you philosophy majors.

We get the Sunday paper, for two reasons. There are a couple of regular features my wife likes to read, and I like looking for leads.

What's replacing paper?

Digital Divide: Print Media Declines As Tablets, E-Readers Rise

Demand for print media is rapidly declining, digital pundits assure us -- but don't take their word for it: paper manufacturers also see the handwriting on the wall.

In fact, a new survey from RISI, a trade organization and business information provider representing the forest products industry, predicts that total demand for paper for magazines and newspapers will drop 12% to 21% by 2015 -- attributing the slump directly to the rise of tablet-style computers and e-readers.

And that's just the beginning, according to RISI, which says paper usage will drop another 40% to 50% by 2025, potentially leaving some paper manufacturers reeling.

As noted, RISI draws a correlation between these projected decreases and the rise of digital devices. At the end of 2010, the RISI study estimates that 15 million tablets and 10 million e-readers were in use in North America, and North American sales of tablets alone are projected to total anywhere from 120 million to 190 million by 2015.

A survey by Morgan Stanley found that 42% of Americans who own a tablet said they plan to cancel their newspaper subscriptions; iBooks continue to be among the most popular free apps for the iPad; and Amazon revealed that digital books outsold print books in the U.S. last year.

What's more, there is still considerable room for digital book sales to increase, according to RISI, as overall adoption rates are just beginning to pick up. From under $100 million in 2007, total digital book sales have increased to about $750 million in 2010, the study estimates, while total print sales have tumbled from about $8.7 billion to $7.7 billion over the same period.

Although digital evangelists will find encouragement in these data, they paint a rather grim picture for paper suppliers.

John Maine, RISI vice president for world graphic paper, who led the study, stated that as "many graphic paper producers make their living selling paper to the publishing industry, those companies will be greatly affected by media tablets," warning that "significant demand impacts could come as soon as 2012."

(Source: Media Daily News, 08/22/11)

By the way, I have a few ideas on how you can convert the budget you have been spending in the newspaper to reach people who are looking for you to spend their money with.

Contact me at Scott@ScLoHo.net and mention newspaper in your email.

9 ideas on 9/9

2011-09-09T06:00:00.001-04:00

A blog I follow is called Dumb Little Man. I prefer to call it DLM. Here's a sample:

Tactics That Will Help You Persuade and Influence People

Posted: 17 Aug 2011 10:20 AM PDT

Persuasiveness is one of the most important skills anyone can learn because it is useful in countless situations. At work, at home, and in your social life, the ability to be persuasive and influence others can be instrumental for achieving goals and being happy.

Learning about the tricks of persuasion can also give you insight into when they're being used on you. The biggest benefit of this is that money will stay in your pockets as you realize just how sales people and advertisers sell you products that you don't necessarily need.

Here are 9 of the best tricks to be persuasive and influence others:

Framing
Framing is a technique often used in politics. A popular example of framing is inheritance taxes. Politicians who are opposed to inheritance taxes will call them death taxes. By using the word death instead of inheritance, all kinds of negative connotations come to mind.

Framing is quite subtle, but by using emotionally charged words, like death, you can easily persuade people to your point of view.

Mirroring
Mirroring someone is when you mimic their movements. The movement can be virtually anything, but some obvious ones are hand gestures, leaning forward or away, or various head and arm movements. We all do this unconsciously, and if you pay attention you'll probably notice yourself doing it, I know I have.

How to mirror someone is self explanatory, but a few key things to remember are to be subtle about it and leave a delay between the other person's movement and your mirroring, 2-4 seconds works best.

Scarcity
This is one that advertisers use a lot. Opportunities, whatever they are, seem a lot more appealing when there is a limited availability.

This can be useful to the average person in the right situation, but even more importantly, this is a method of persuasion to be aware of. Stop and consider how much you're being influenced by the fact that a product is scarce. If the product is scarce, there must be a ton of demand for it right?

Reciprocation
It's the old saying, "Do unto others...". When someone does something for us, we feel compelled to return the favor. So, if you want someone to do something nice for you, why not do something nice for them first. In a business setting, maybe you pass them a lead. If at home, maybe it's you letting the neighbor borrow the lawn mower. It doesn't matter where or when you do it, the key is to compliment the relationship.

Timing
People are more likely to be agreeable and submissive when they're mentally fatigued. Before you ask someone for something they might not be quick to agree to, try waiting until a more opportune time when they've just done something mentally taxing. This could be at the end of the work day when you catch a co-worker on their way out the door. Whatever you ask, a likely response is, "I'll take care of it tomorrow."

Congruence
We all try, subconsciously, to be consistent with previous actions. One great example is a technique used by salespeople. A salesperson will shake your hand as he is negotiating with you. In most peoples minds, a handshake equates to a closed deal, and so by doing this before the deal is reached, the salesperson is much more likely to negotiate you in to a closed deal.

A good way to use this yourself is to get people acting before they make up their minds. If, for example, you were out and about with a friend and you wanted to go see a movie but the friend was undecided, you could start walking in the direction of the theater while they make up their mind.

Fluid Speech
When we talk, we often use little interjections and hesitant phrases such as "ummm" or "I mean" and of course there is the ubiquitous "like". These little conversation quirks have the unintended effect of making us seem less confident and sure of ourselves, and thus less persuasive.

If you're confident in your speech, others will be more easily persuaded by what you have to say.

Herd Behavior
We are all natural born followers. It's sad but true. We constantly look to those around us to determine our actions; we have the need for acceptance.

A simple, effective way to use this to your advantage is to be a leader, let the herd follow you.

Friends and Authorities
We are far more likely to follow or be persuaded by someone we like or by someone who is in an authority position. Not only is this a good one to be aware of to combat persuasive techniques being used on you, it's also a good one to use on others because you would be surprised how easy it is to get people to like you and establish authority within groups.

Give some of these ideas a shot and let us know if you are suddenly selling more, having more favors done for you, or becoming a master of delegation and persuasion at work!

Written on 8/28/2008 by Stuart M. Stuart blogs at Improved Lives and is a recent university graduate and a writer who has always had a passion for learning about how psychology can be beneficial in day to day life. Republished 8/17/2011

Photo Credit: fredcamino

ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom

The New ScLoHo Website

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

The Danger of Generic

Don't Introduce Yourself to a Customer You've Already Met

Email Tips

New Ad Campaigns

Closing Time

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

A Few Secrets

Why My Business Card says Consultant

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Trade Show Tips for 2012

Three Tips for Tradeshow Success

Gobbledygook

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Ready to Win?

How Healthy Are You?

Are you keeping the Magic?

Marketing/Sales = Water/Oil?

No Sleaze Please

BIG or small?

The Future belongs to Digital

Sales Manager Tips

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Social Sharing

Trust

Thursday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

New Ad Campaigns

Diagnose with these 3 Steps

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

The NetFlix Fix?

Why You Need to Listen 1st

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Dealing With Shorter Attention Spans

Listen to what's not being Said

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Mixing New & Old

An Agenda

Shake It Up

Do Words Really Matter?

Just Words? Rating the Republican Nominees on Their Slogans

It Seems None of Them Learned From Barack Obama's 2008 Positioning

The Real Problem

Classic Ad of the Week

Moms Want to Connect

Communication

Lesson #1 Here’s one example from Jeremiah Owyang:

Lesson #2

Lesson 2A

Final Take-away

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

The Ineffective Email

Five Email Design Must-Haves

Research

Thursday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

New Ad Campaigns

Clarify

Wednesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Christmas 2011 Forecast

The Purpose of a Proposal

Tuesday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Social Media, not Just for Kids

Learn A Few

Monday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Accuracy in ROI

Training Time?

Beyond 9/11

Q R Coding

A few words on Coaching

Classic Ad of the Week

9/11/11

Prospecting in 2011

Friday Night Marketing News from Mediapost

Daddy, What's a Newspaper?

9 ideas on 9/9

Lesson #1
Here’s one example from Jeremiah Owyang: