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“It was a dark and stormy night” is the classic lead. But what if it was a “bright and sunny morning?” Then you’re stuck with a ho-hum lead and we all know, ho-humness doesn’t get us any prizes.
Read Strive PR’s “ Seven Leads to Hook Readers.” when you’re sitting at the keyboard and the muse doesn’t bonk you on the head.
If you think marketing’s a challenging job, consider the plight of Sunita Williams, whose gig at the space station has been extended. So, when you’re 24/7 in the space station, do you get any break on the weekends to, you know, pop open one of those Netflix envelopes?
Poor girl doesn’t seem to have much fun up there. I don’t really want to know about that “wasabi on the walls” incident. If that’s indicative of the whole experience, I’d say NASA should find a way to get her home so she can take on a nice, comfortable desk job. Maybe there’s an ad agency out there that’s looking for someone with some global experience??
How funny is this photo from boingboing? (If you haven’t gone there yet, I strongly suggest you visit this amazing site). Those cities being visited by “the Donald” are very familiar with his ubiquitous Real Estate Expo billboards. This one got hacked in Toronto, resulting in a declaration that surely shows spring -- and love -- are in the air!.
From the “things you wish people would keep to themselves” file comes a Hanes Web site that features “bad bra stories.” For example:
I was in the middle of a presentation when I felt a strong itch at my back becoming unbearable. I reached back as discreetly as possible to itch as I continued talking. Throughout the meeting the tag kept itching and I kept scratching it, thinking nobody noticed. The next day when I came in there was a note on my desk from my boss – recommending a good itch-relief cream.
Nice stuff. Yes, I know that Oprah devotes entire shows to bras, but can’t we discuss anything more consequential? I mean if Madeleine Albright had an itchy tag during some big old summit, I’m sure she just yanked the thing off and got back to work.
I love teaching, but I hate saying good-bye to my class. I just finished teaching a business writing course at University of California, Irvine. It’s great to have taught another group of students. I just don’t like the fact that I’ve gotten to know my students and now I have to bid them adieu
Teaching is a special privilege. You get to talk about what you know to an ATTENTIVE audience. And, maybe … just maybe…by imparting your knowledge, you help people do better.
I’ve been teaching for over a decade. There are some very special students I’ve had the fun of instructing over the years. The dirty little secret is that they’ve taught me far more than I could have ever taught them. If I have my way, I will keep teaching for many, many years. It’s what keeps me young…er.
Can someone explain to me why Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are the subject of a new film? It seems that these four masked turtle-boys are a product of the 1980s. By the time my now 14-year-old son was born, the world had moved on to Power Rangers and all the other mass-merchandised fare of the mid-1990s.
So, who would be interested in this product of the Regan-era? I understand there’s a slight resurgence in popularity for the characters, but are there really legions of followers?
Seems to me that we recycle so much that doesn’t deserve a second life. My kids grew up without TMNT and I don’t think they suffered too much.
A question I ask every day. From StickerGiant.com. Check out their fun and often irreverent statements!
Say what you will about McDonalds. They certainly got a drubbing in Supersize Me, one that many say is well-deserved (any company that serves the picture on the left needs a scoldiing). Personally, I thank my lucky stars that my children have outgrown the “gotta have that Happy Meal and a toy” phase. My 14-year-old, in fact, is a dedicated vegetarian.
You have to give credit to the Mickey-D folks, however, for establishing a social responsibility blog. Yup, that’s right – McDonalds wants to have a discussion on a number of topics: environment, active lifestyles, purchasing policies, etc. It’s a brave act, and one that should be applauded.
I do think it’s interesting, though, that comments to the blog are posted in 8-point “mice type.” There are some interesting comments, but I got a headache reading them. Felt like the “brain freeze” I used to get when I was in high school and addicted to those super-over-processed McDonalds milkshakes. Fortunately, I’m older and wiser now.
Love the “would you miss” installments on Brand Autopsy. Blogger John Moore asks whether or not you’d miss a number of companies with lukewarm brands. For example:
Would you miss Sears if it went out of business? Does Sears provide such a unique product and customer experience that we would be saddened if it didn’t exist? Does Sears treat its employees so astonishingly well that those workers would not be able to find another employer to treat them as well? Does Sears forge such unfailing emotional connections with its customers that they would fail to find another retailer that could forge just as strong an emotional bond?
You can ask these questions about a number of brands. For example, I wouldn’t miss a whole bunch of fast food organizations, airlines and cell phone carriers. Sorry, but those “unfailing emotional connections” just aren’t there. Good stuff to ponder.
I hate heights and I can't abide by anything that shakes or rattles. Guess I won't be traveling to Arizona any time soon to take a walk on the Grand Canyon's new Glass Bridge. It's 4,000 feet above the Colorado River on the very edge of the canyon.
According to the Grand Canyon's Web site, the thing is built to withstand the weight of 71 fully loaded Boeing 747 airplanes as well as an 8.0 magnitude earthquake. That's good to know, but I get the willies crossing the Golden Gate Bridge.
One of my business communications students had an interesting observation last night. She's from Turkey and says that she's surprised at how Americans treat her at work. They're just too nice, she says.
According to my student, she is constantly being told "good job!" or "that was great!" every time she makes a presentation or presents an idea. She says that she knows her work isn't always so stellar, so she wonders why Americans feel so obligated to make her feel good.
"It's at the point where I don't believe them anymore," she says. "I am surprised Americans aren't more direct at the workplace."
What do you think? Are we addicted to sugar coating?
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Seems the joke going around corporate marketing folks is, "When all else fails, offer a Nano." We offer Nanos (or a chance for one) for just about everything -- submitting a good idea to the suggestion box, donating blood, wearing corporate colors or decorating the old cubicle.
With so many of the same prizes going around, is everyone on at least their second Nano by now? Just thought I'd ask....
I enjoyed this article in the Washington Post. Whew! Makes moms all over the country feel a tad bit better.
I think that some of the reason moms are spending more time with kids is that today’s younger set doesn’t get to “go play.” Remember what that meant? A “go play” in my childhood home was code for go run down the street to see if Mary or Debbie can play with you.
Most moms today would never tell their kids to just blithely run down the street. Instead they’ll schedule a play date, which is fine but it’s also a lot of scheduling and doesn’t happen every day.
Most kids spend much more time alone than we ever did, which makes mom feel they should engage them in an activity. I find myself inventing a lot of stuff (trips to car museums, pet shows, etc.) to get kids out of the house and active.
But then again, maybe moms just want to be with their kids more…could be.
Tried to convince my seventy and eighty-something parents to switch to online banking. (What do you mean write checks on the computer????) It was an interesting discussion, especially since my dad (the eightysomething) spends a good deal of his time on the Internet these days
Suffice it to say, they weren’t sold. Mom says her checkbook is just fine and she’s got a system of “balancing down to the penny.” That, of course, is better than I can say. Last time I balanced my checkbook, I believe that pesky Iran-Contra thing was going down.
Then, we got to talking about another ancient household item…the phone book. Who actually uses those ridiculous tree-killers? Apparently, there still are plenty of us moistening our fingers as we flip through the onion-skin pages of our local directories.
According to the ATT Yellow Pages site, more than 50% of Americans use the directories more than once a week? Really? And now they’re going to tell us that people still watch the evening news. Sheesh.
Ok, first it was linkedin.com. Last week, it was zoominfo.com . And this week, I’m learning that all the world is a-twitter.
For those who are still getting used to blogging, there’s a whole wide world out there trying to get you even more connected. Linkedin.com, as I’ve written before, is sort of an adult’s version of myspace.com. You “link” to others in your field or at your office and develop this sort-of community of adults who really should be spending more time doing something useful.
Zoominfo.com is still a bit of a mystery to me. All I knew was that there was some horribly incorrect information about me that I felt compelled to correct (as if there’s anyone on earth who is really going to look up my profile).Apparently, there are “crawlers” lurking all over the Internet picking up info on you to build your zoominfo.com profile. Wow, that makes me feel bette
Twitter.com is a way to send messages to friends, families and whomever using the Internet, phone or whatever device is being dreamed up in Silicon Valley. I’m really not too hip on this one, but you can only send 140 characters or less. Sounds to me like there aren’t any future Tolstoys twittering away.
With all this communication, one wonders what in the heck people have to say. I mean if someone is spending two hours a day twittering, linkingin, etc., are they really doing anything all that interesting the rest of the time?
I like the idea that most great marketing ideas tell a story. For example, those new Target prescription bottles are the result of a student’s story about her grandmother.
The bottles’ designer, Deborah Adler, conceived of the botles when her grandmother took her husband's prescription by mistake. Both had been prescribed the same medication, but in different dosages. Due to the poor information design and inconsistencies of placement of information on the label, the grandmother became seriously ill. Adler began revisiting the pharmaceutical bottle's information design.
The result was a prescription container much different from the familiar amber-colored bottle introduced in the mid 20th century. The new bottles are upside-down and rest on their caps. Each bottle has the patient's name displayed at the very top of the front panel. Below this, in bold and all-caps, is the prescription name. Below the name are instructions followed by a line, where secondary, information is found. Gone is extraneous information such as the prescribing doctor's address, which uses up valuable real estate.
What stories do you have that may lead to the next brilliant idea? I’m betting that there’s something you or a family member have experienced that may become the impetus to the next big thing.
No, not "what makes you passionate?" That's a different story ... but as a marketer, you should know your passions. I just heard Joe Sullivan of Market Insights talk and he had some interesting things to say about pursuing passions.
My passions are teaching, my family and writing. Ask me about any of these and I'll get excited. In fact, sit next to me at some dinner event and I'll start chatting about my family and teaching -- it just comes naturally (I don't "talk writing" -- that seems odd).
Your marketing should stem from your passions. For example, if your family is your passion, think of products and services that would help or delight them.
Or, as Sullivan points out, take a cue from Jim Mackey of Whole Foods .He has a passion for companies conscientiously giving back to the planet. And because there's passion there, he does it very well.
Great tips from Chris Brown’s blog Branding and Marketing on how to take a decent public relations photo:
Note to Bush's P.R. Advance Team... May want to consider another location than Brazil for a "good will" tour. Did they love you in South America?
Not so much.... (photo from Knuttz.net)
The maven is heading to Vegas again. It's the second trip in two weeks. One might think I'm a big fan of the place. Not really. I'm more inclined to insanely populated areas on a tiny island (Manhattan) than insanely populated areas on a single street (Vegas).
Fascinating how Vegas reinvents itself, though. It's kind of the Madonna method of marketing -- keep 'em guessing all the time. I still remember the old "family" Vegas (my, wasn't THAT a success???). Now we're back to unadulterated overindulgence, which, of course, suits the place just fine.
Check out Vegas Visionary for a cool site that takes Burger King's classic Subservient Chicken chicken site a step further. You can supposedly ask any question, although the visionary is more evasive than all-knowing.
Three things about marketing to the next generation I learned just from looking at my teenager:
They lead second lives – No, I’m not talking Second Life, the land of Linden dollars, et. al. I’m talking about all that bravado they spew in their MySpace pages. If you read my 14-year-old’s page, you’d think he was Tom Waits, sucking down another bourbon (which he’s not, thank goodness).
They like to write – Ok, so their poetry ain’t award-winning, just yet. But all that hunting and pecking on the keyboard has inspired many to take up writing. They scoff at “My Chemical Romance” for being too emo, but they like the lyrics.
They carry laptops like security blankets – The next generation will want that warm hum of a computer next to them way into their adulthood. Just as my generation “turned on the t.v. just to hear another person talking,” they will turn on their computers “just to feel connected.”
Found this through boingboing.net again (amazing site). It appears on a blog called justinspace.com and truly belongs in the hall of fame for "bizarre brand extensions."
Yes, Hello Kitty wine exists. We can all assume that it is super-sweet and hasn't mellowed with age.
Answers that age-old question of what to drink with pink-frosted birthday cake.
Just after I wrote about mommybloggers (see yesterday's entry), it appears there are even Jet Blue "hostage" bloggers. Yes, it's an entire blog dedicated to the now infamous Valentine's Day incident at JFK.
These folks aren't happy, either:
"Who lets 100+ people sit in an airpline on the tarmac for 8-10 straight hours? No matter the weather conditions, at the three-hour mark it's time to unload the plane and review options.
But instead, after 11 hours of no food, overflowing toilets, fetid air and justifiably distressed passengers, Jet Blue finally unloaded stranded passengers because ... wait for it ... the crew's flight time had "expired."
Lesson of the Day: Companies that screw up have no place to hide. Years ago, I was in a similar incident with another airline and had to revert to calling the local newspaper on my cell phone. It resulted in a tiny blip of a news story (two -- count'em -- two engine failures on two separate planes trying to get back to L.A.), but that's another story. Had I been blogging, the story would have been all over the Web.
Kudos to Jet Blue, however, for inviting the blogger to visit with the CEO. The power of the blogger is tough to ignore.
you a few hundred dollars.
lot to say.
These mugs from the incredibly talented Nick Usborne's Excessive Voice are too funny. If you know someone who's into "paradigm shifts" or "interfacing," they're the perfect gift.
A few other choice phrases from the site:
I have come to the sad realization that I am too old to run away and join the circus. But if I could, I’d join Cirque du Soleil. By now, almost everyone and their zebra has seen a Cirque performance. At one time, they were considered the “out there” performers. Now they’re standard Vegas fare. They’re still good mind you, but no longer a great little cultish thing to do.
Last night, I saw “O,” which is better known as “the underwater performance.” That’s not entirely true. There’s as much above as below water action. I liked it and think there are some very important marketing lesson to be learned:
When I was a kid, the family dog suffered many indignities. Coco roamed the underside of the dinner table, waiting for scraps. My father would try to nudge it away from him. My mother would occasionally slip him a slice of roast beef. But mostly, Coco ate smelly canned dog food.
If only Coco were alive today. He'd enjoy all those doggie pet spas, special foods, cool togs and even classes to teach him some pet manners.
Pet marketing is BIG. Americans own more pets than ever before. Pets can be found in more than 63% of all US households. Today there are over 135 million cats and dogs living in American homes.
We also know that pets are therapeutic for aging boomers. They help people feel less loney and safer. They're also fun to pamper, apparently.
So, pity poor Coco, born too soon. But if you're a marketer, take advantage of the trend.
Did you know that Linux was originally called “Freax” for “free” and “freak? The name "Linux" was coined by Ari Lemmke, who administered an FTP server belonging to the Finnish University Network; he invented the name Linux for the directory from which the Freax project was first available for download.
Is that cool information or what? There are hundred of stories of famous brands on the History of Branding Web site. The site, which is dedicated to “educating the planet about branding,” has the history of hundreds of famous brands.
There are also great little tidbits on well known commercials and some great overall quotes on branding. My favorite from Bob Marley: "I have a BMW. But only because BMW stands for Bob Marley and The Wailers, and not because I need an expensive car." Cool.
For everyone who’s ever woken up in a hotel room, found a USA Today crammed under their door and wished for a “real paper,” take a look at the publication’s new Web page.
The site has undergone massive changes, including:
• Space for readers to “join the conversation” with comments. Of course this is always tricky and if you read some of the comments left on recent stories, you wonder why people even bother (emoticons, silly leave-behinds, etc.). The idea is right, though. Lets hope readers use this space more intelligently.
• A “vote for this story” option. The intent is to get readers to recommend pieces to each other.
• A profile page for readers to upload photos, write a blog and send messages to other users.
• An avatar that tells you when you have a message.
• The “community center” blog that includes user-submitted photos, bits of information and “gossip that won’t get you into trouble,” as the publication says.
Now, the cynical among us will think that USA Today is just cheaping out and relying more on “citizen journalists” to fill their pages. Others might say it’s the right way to go --- after all, aren’t we all part of this new social media?
Hmm. Something to think about next time you’re stuck in the Embassy Suites with your USA Today, making the dash to the front of the breakfast line.
Do you think that it's already time to get nostalgic about beloved Internet characters? (Remember that cutle little Webcrawler spider dude?) Perhaps top in the collection of "where are they now" is Ask.com's Mr. Jeeves.
The trusted butler went to the "gentleman's gentleman" graveyard back in 2005. Ask.com said that he was confusing users and wasn't representative of the site's many capabilities. Pish posh, as Mr. Jeeves might say.
For those who don't really give a crumpet, I'll be brief about the good butler's history. Jeeves was named after P.G. Wodehouse's very helpful valet. Over the years, he got a 
few makeovers on the Web, including a slimming down and tanner complexion. You'd think that would have been the ticket, but he still got the boot.
Of course, good butlers remain in our hearts and minds for a long time. I still get all misty about Mr. French.
For those copywriters who think writing for search engines is a plebian grind (how dare I bastardize my copy for robots, etc., etc.), there are ways around your pain.
For example, search engines don't care about punctuation and line breaks. So, you have a bit more flexibility with your copy than you think.
For example, let's say you must use the keyphrase "marketing communications mavens" (again, shameless plug). It is possible to write "I have always been fascinated with marketing communications. Mavens in the field are hard to find" or ("a dime a dozen, if you wish).
Granted, that may not cure all your pain, but it's a neat little tip I recently learned. Consider search engine optimization a challenge, not a chore. And no, the robots aren't taking over your writing. Promise.
I just completed Draft One of my novel. Amazing feeling. it's still in very raw form, but I do feel that I've accomplished something.
The next few months will be spent editing, tweaking and fretting. Then, I suppose the grand pitch begins. Augh. Uncharted territory, although exhilarating. More to come...
Good stuff on KnowThis, a marketing blog… Five Concepts You Must Know to Be a Modern Marketer By Paul Christ
Here is something to get you thinking. Below is my list of five important concepts that today’s marketers must know. Unfortunately, it is my experience that many marketers have only vague knowledge of these concepts. So if you fall into that category you have plenty of company.I’m not going to address in detail what these are, that is your job. But I will say that if you are not thoroughly familiar with each of these topics then you owe it to yourself to learn. Soon! Pick up books, go to websites, attend seminars, enroll in courses. Whatever it takes learn these concepts as soon as you can.
For those of you in non-profit organizations, I would recommend the very short monograph by Jim Collins, "Good to Great and the Social Sectors."
Many people enter the non-profit world and think they have landed in Oz -- or some culture too far out to name. In this realm, the power structure tends to be diffuse,culture reigns supreme and individual achievement is held with skepticism. Those from for-profits are sometimes told they are just "too businesslike."
Collins' book assures non-profit newbies that there is life after landing in this strange new world.The book is organized around five issues that need to be addressed for greatness:
The fact is non-profits can do even greater things than for-profits. If you're game for this "different" world, read the Collins monograph first.
