Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Stop! Hammertime Again?!

Oh boy, I had a fear once that MC Hammer pants would come back in fashion. Today, I'm afraid that irrational fear could become a reality. A new show called Hammertime will air on A&E. The guerilla video below is being used to promote the show. Pretty funny given the latest fad of "skinny jeans" being all the rage.


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Facebook Vanity URLs

If you're a professional or business owner using Facebook as part of your marketing strategy, be sure to take advantage of the new Facebook vanity pages. You can sign up to get the username or company name you want. For example I am www.facebook.com/pachladis, which ties into my Twitter handle of @pachladis as well as my email, etc. If you're trying to create a personal brand or have an online brand for your offline business, consistency is important so try to keep your identities the same to get the benefits of the search engines indexing you or your company.

To sign up for your personal page, go to http://www.facebook.com/username. Dont wait long, because if someone gets the name you want before you do - it's too late. Also note that once you've chosen your vanity URL you can not change it, so choose wisely.

Friday, June 12, 2009

GM "Reinvention" Spoof - Because People Can't Help Themselves!

Okay, first I want to say that I saw the new GM "Reinvention" spot and I was impressed with the messaging and quality and imagery. I thought the agency who produced the spot and GM did a great job of conveying strength and hope for the future of the American auto giant...that being said, the GM "Retardation" spoof is still funny. After all the scandals and bailouts of American corporations over the last decade, how can one not make light of the positive spin that corporations in bankruptcy reorganization use?

New Heinz Bottle Spot True to Legacy of Heinz Brand

Just watched the new Heinz "Bottle" :60 spot (produced by Abbot Mead Vickers BBDO). Love it! I think it does an excellent job of reinforcing the Heinz Company's "anticipation" positioning and of reinforcing their leadership in the ketchup category.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Is Your Brand Really Different?

Branding a product or service based on differentiated attributes or features is not a new concept...yet so many companies get it wrong.

To be unique, a brand needs to 1) Be important to the target audience, 2) Meet a need or promote a brand promise not currently being used by a competitor and 3) Be supported by company strengths and/or processes.

Typically in branding, the brand tries to own only one or two key benefits or attributes. The more complicated a brand promise or brand message, the less likely a consumer is to remember it. We need simple yet powerful concepts that consumers can and will relate to.

Below are some possible ways to differentiate a brand. Keep in mind that choosing several of these and lumping them together will not be advisable. Again, focusing on one or two key areas is best.

* Brand is a category leader (Crest)
* Brand is a category inventor (Sensodyne - toothpaste for sensitive teeth)
* Brand was a pioneer in a market - Ford, Coca-Cola
* Brand is the category innovator (Toyota, Dell)
* Brand is the most convenient or easy to use (Band-aid)
* Brand meets a niche need and leads at serving that niche
* Brand delivers a unique product purchase or usage experience (Apple, Dell)
* Brand is the "next big thing"
* Brand tells an engaging story about itself that consumers connect with
* Brand is trusted
* Brand is a technology leader
* Brand has unique qualities
* Brand comes from a place known for excellence in category (California Wine, Italian Olive Oil)
* Brand is the choice of experts (Tylenol, Jif)
* Brand is the best value for the cost (Wal-mart
* Brand is the definition of luxury in a category (Lexus, Rolex, etc)
* Brand is all-natural (Horizon organic milk, Kraft naturals)

Once you've adequately branded yourself based on what you and your market dictate, then you must craft marketing messages and use tactics that constantly reinforce that central brand idea.

LinkedIn Demographics

LinkedIn is a great tool for networking online. It's a great way to connect with people you work with now or have worked with in the past as well as to create new business relationships. Recent LinkedIn statistics show the following data:

Average age: 41

Male: 64%

Household Income: $100K+ = 53%

Own Smart phone or PDA: 34%

College Grad/Post Grad: 80.1%

Business Decision Maket: 49%

Portfolio value of $250k+ = 24%

Job Titles:

C-Level Executives - 7.8%
EVP/SVP - 6.5%
Sr Mgmt - 16%
Middle Management - 18%

These statistics were provided by www.linkedsecrets.com/blog.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Bud Light Commercial - Poor Guy

LOL! The new Bud Light commercial with the guy in the store buying beer and a dirty magazine "for his friend" is really funny. It makes me wonder how many guys have had this experience...although I'm not sympathetic!

Monday, June 1, 2009

Love the Geico Kash Commercials?

I don't care what anyone says, I love the Geico "Kash" spots. There's something really really funny about a pair of eyes on a pile of cash with 80s music like Michael Jackson's Somebodys Watchin Me. And even if other ad people don't like the spots, they still have to admit that is it yet another creative way of expressing Geico's "save money on car insurance" position.



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