e Consultancy

Budweiser Super Bowl ad: something new or just another flash mob?

eConsultancy - Sa, 02/04/2012 - 00:44

Yesterday, Budweiser released a video on YouTube of two amateur hockey teams surprised with pro treatment as screaming fans, cheerleaders and mascots attended their pick up game. This two minute spot is the extended version of their new ad premiering in Canada during the Super Bowl.

Compared to the other Super Bowl ad promos bouncing around the internet, this one seemingly created an emotional connection with consumers that the other more gimmicky and "clever" ads, aren't delivering. But is this just another tired use of flash mobs in advertising?

Budweiser's marketing manager, Ben Seaton, says no.

"I'm not concerned that it will be labelled as another flash mob. That's not why we made it and that's not what it is. It's not the theme that makes it relatable and relevant. It's the fact that it is so touching and it's a great story."

As flash mobs are mainly considered the thing of the past, why this approach? According to Seaton, Budweiser are big fans of hockey and part of its marketing strategy is to help provide more excitement and give more guys the opportunity to experience the game. The team behind the ad asked themselves how they could go and honour those guys who dedicate their lives to recreational hockey and give them an experience they'll never forget. This is the result:

Ameer Khan was one of the players on the ice.

Some guy shows up to watch one of our regular League games and later calls our team rep to say they would like to do a documentary about beer league hockey and if we would be interested in playing an exhibition game. So we show up at Port Credit Arena still not sure what's going on. The producer says just play and enjoy the game.

After the 1st period we notice the Budweiser Zamboni. Then by the 2nd period there are mascots, play by play announcers and 500 screaming fans wearing our jerseys. The noise was insane, couldn’t even hear the ref's whistle.

Rhys Howell, who saw the video as it made its rounds yesterday, said: "When I first saw the Budweiser video I was choked up because I instantly thought about how awesome those guys must have felt. How awesome would I have felt if I was on that rink when it happened? I guess that's what Budweiser want me to think and they want me to love Budweiser for changing my life if only for a moment."

"One of the powers of this spot is that everyone dreams about playing in front of fans," comments Seaton. “So this has legs around the world. We've left it to the consumer and it is travelling quite well. We will drive traffic to see it during the Super Bowl and then put out new content, including a four minute behind the scene piece, every two or three days. The campaign will be supported through Facebook, Twitter and traditional digital marketing."

Though there is growing attention around this video (which is at nearly half a million views in less than two days), not everyone is convinced of this approach. Leigh Caldwell of Inon states:

If they'd done it eight years ago it would have been original, heart-warming and surprising. We'd have watched it over and over on that new "YouTube" thing and emailed it to our friends on AIM. In 2012, it's trite, obvious and more likely to lead to a bunch of quickly-edited parodies on YouTube than to any genuine affection. Anyone who doesn't already love hockey isn't going to be swept up in a magical storm of teary manly joy by this fluff.

Howell isn't convinced he will change his mind about the brand but believes by sharing the video, "some people could be converted to the Bud side and really that's all that was required of me."

For Khan, being a part of this moment will become a central part of his own story. "Budweiser has made an emotional connection with me that will last a lifetime. Everyone on twitter is saying it brought them to tears and cheers. From now on every Budweiser I have will have a story."

This is exactly what Seaton and the Budweiser team were hoping for. "I would love if every person who watched it would feel the same way. We created a bond with those guys on the ice. Hopefully, their story has created the bond with the consumer. If that's what they take away, it's a positive view of the brand. And that's all that we wanted."

Budweiser has never seen the type of media and consumer interest as they’ve had so far through this video. Internally this is already being touted as best practice for them and they credit the story, rather than the delivery.

The big question is did it work for you? Do you think marketers need to focus more on the story in their campaigns? Or was this execution better left for the 2009 marketing vaults?

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Budweiser Super Bowl ad: something new or just another flash mob?

eConsultancy - Sa, 02/04/2012 - 00:44

Yesterday, Budweiser released a video on YouTube of two amateur hockey teams surprised with pro treatment as screaming fans, cheerleaders and mascots attended their pick up game. This two minute spot is the extended version of their new ad premiering in Canada during the Super Bowl.

Compared to the other Super Bowl ad promos bouncing around the internet, this one seemingly created an emotional connection with consumers that the other more gimmicky and "clever" ads, aren't delivering. But is this just another tired use of flash mobs in advertising?

Budweiser's marketing manager, Ben Seaton, says no.

"I'm not concerned that it will be labelled as another flash mob. That's not why we made it and that's not what it is. It's not the theme that makes it relatable and relevant. It's the fact that it is so touching and it's a great story."

As flash mobs are mainly considered the thing of the past, why this approach? According to Seaton, Budweiser are big fans of hockey and part of its marketing strategy is to help provide more excitement and give more guys the opportunity to experience the game. The team behind the ad asked themselves how they could go and honour those guys who dedicate their lives to recreational hockey and give them an experience they'll never forget. This is the result:

Ameer Khan was one of the players on the ice.

Some guy shows up to watch one of our regular League games and later calls our team rep to say they would like to do a documentary about beer league hockey and if we would be interested in playing an exhibition game. So we show up at Port Credit Arena still not sure what's going on. The producer says just play and enjoy the game.

After the 1st period we notice the Budweiser Zamboni. Then by the 2nd period there are mascots, play by play announcers and 500 screaming fans wearing our jerseys. The noise was insane, couldn’t even hear the ref's whistle.

Rhys Howell, who saw the video as it made its rounds yesterday, said: "When I first saw the Budweiser video I was choked up because I instantly thought about how awesome those guys must have felt. How awesome would I have felt if I was on that rink when it happened? I guess that's what Budweiser want me to think and they want me to love Budweiser for changing my life if only for a moment."

"One of the powers of this spot is that everyone dreams about playing in front of fans," comments Seaton. “So this has legs around the world. We've left it to the consumer and it is travelling quite well. We will drive traffic to see it during the Super Bowl and then put out new content, including a four minute behind the scene piece, every two or three days. The campaign will be supported through Facebook, Twitter and traditional digital marketing."

Though there is growing attention around this video (which is at nearly half a million views in less than two days), not everyone is convinced of this approach. Leigh Caldwell of Inon states:

If they'd done it eight years ago it would have been original, heart-warming and surprising. We'd have watched it over and over on that new "YouTube" thing and emailed it to our friends on AIM. In 2012, it's trite, obvious and more likely to lead to a bunch of quickly-edited parodies on YouTube than to any genuine affection. Anyone who doesn't already love hockey isn't going to be swept up in a magical storm of teary manly joy by this fluff.

Howell isn't convinced he will change his mind about the brand but believes by sharing the video, "some people could be converted to the Bud side and really that's all that was required of me."

For Khan, being a part of this moment will become a central part of his own story. "Budweiser has made an emotional connection with me that will last a lifetime. Everyone on twitter is saying it brought them to tears and cheers. From now on every Budweiser I have will have a story."

This is exactly what Seaton and the Budweiser team were hoping for. "I would love if every person who watched it would feel the same way. We created a bond with those guys on the ice. Hopefully, their story has created the bond with the consumer. If that's what they take away, it's a positive view of the brand. And that's all that we wanted."

Budweiser has never seen the type of media and consumer interest as they’ve had so far through this video. Internally this is already being touted as best practice for them and they credit the story, rather than the delivery.

The big question is did it work for you? Do you think marketers need to focus more on the story in their campaigns? Or was this execution better left for the 2009 marketing vaults?

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Will Facebook help or hurt the startup economy?

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 23:50

When Facebook filed to go public earlier this week, you can be sure that the excitement in the halls of Facebook's offices was palpable. After all, the company's wild ride is going to make a lot of people very wealthy.

But the excitement around Facebook's IPO isn't just being felt amongst Facebook's employees. It's creating increased excitement for technology entrepreneurs, some of whom hope their startups could be the next Facebook.

There's certainly reason to believe that Facebook's public debut will help the startup community. After all, Facebook is probably going to be the largest technology IPO ever.

But it's about more than that. Consider the following:

• A company that was started in a university dorm room has quite literally changed the world in less than a decade. From culture to marketing, even if you don't 'like' the world's largest social network, it's hard to deny its impact.
• In eight years, Facebook has not only grown into a multi-billion dollar business, it has spurred the creation of other multi-billion dollar businesses.
• It came through the Great Recession unscathed, and just a few short years after the world's financial markets collapsed, could be valued by investors at as much as $100bn.
• Facebook's CEO is a 27 year-old Harvard dropout who, for all intents and purposes, never had a 'real job' before he started Facebook with his university buddies.

Facebook may not be perfect, and it could very well be significantly overvalued when its stock begins trading, but make no mistake about it: it's perhaps the strongest case study for 'Internet FTW!' and should help convince investors who still need convincing that few markets today offer the opportunities that technology does. That, logically, should promote more investment in technology, an apparent boon for startups.

But will all of that investment really go to startups? And of the portion that does, which startups will capture the greatest amount? The answers to these questions aren't really clear.

On both, it's worth considering that the Facebook IPO could actually take some money out of the startup ecosystem. While some of the funds that invested in the company will certainly take their IPO gains and put them into new companies, a publicly-traded Facebook could gobble up investment of its own. Case in point: in the run-up to the company's IPO, we saw numerous funds purchasing Facebook stock on secondary markets. Without those secondary markets, at least some of that that capital might have gone to younger startups.

With that in mind, it's worth considering that a successful public debut may push some investors to focus on mature startups with the potential to follow Facebook into the public markets in the next couple of years. That would benefit large, already well-funded startups like Box.net, Dropbox and AirBnB, but not necessarily younger startups whose futures are still far from certain.

Finally, some are pointing out that, flush with newly-liquid and highly-valuable stock, Facebook could help push the acquihire craze to new heights. In acquihires, larger companies like Facebook and Google buy small, young startups not for their products, but rather for their people. That's good for the well-connected investors who sometimes put in as little as five-figures for a stake in these companies, but it isn't necessarily good for entrepreneurs and the startup economy. After all, the entrepreneurs go to work for the acquirer and promising products which could be the next Facebooks usually die, leaving fewer and fewer 'good' startups to invest in.

Which brings us back to the original question: is Facebook good for the startup economy or not? As Facebook itself would say, "It's complicated."

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Will Facebook help or hurt the startup economy?

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 23:50

When Facebook filed to go public earlier this week, you can be sure that the excitement in the halls of Facebook's offices was palpable. After all, the company's wild ride is going to make a lot of people very wealthy.

But the excitement around Facebook's IPO isn't just being felt amongst Facebook's employees. It's creating increased excitement for technology entrepreneurs, some of whom hope their startups could be the next Facebook.

There's certainly reason to believe that Facebook's public debut will help the startup community. After all, Facebook is probably going to be the largest technology IPO ever.

But it's about more than that. Consider the following:

• A company that was started in a university dorm room has quite literally changed the world in less than a decade. From culture to marketing, even if you don't 'like' the world's largest social network, it's hard to deny its impact.
• In eight years, Facebook has not only grown into a multi-billion dollar business, it has spurred the creation of other multi-billion dollar businesses.
• It came through the Great Recession unscathed, and just a few short years after the world's financial markets collapsed, could be valued by investors at as much as $100bn.
• Facebook's CEO is a 27 year-old Harvard dropout who, for all intents and purposes, never had a 'real job' before he started Facebook with his university buddies.

Facebook may not be perfect, and it could very well be significantly overvalued when its stock begins trading, but make no mistake about it: it's perhaps the strongest case study for 'Internet FTW!' and should help convince investors who still need convincing that few markets today offer the opportunities that technology does. That, logically, should promote more investment in technology, an apparent boon for startups.

But will all of that investment really go to startups? And of the portion that does, which startups will capture the greatest amount? The answers to these questions aren't really clear.

On both, it's worth considering that the Facebook IPO could actually take some money out of the startup ecosystem. While some of the funds that invested in the company will certainly take their IPO gains and put them into new companies, a publicly-traded Facebook could gobble up investment of its own. Case in point: in the run-up to the company's IPO, we saw numerous funds purchasing Facebook stock on secondary markets. Without those secondary markets, at least some of that that capital might have gone to younger startups.

With that in mind, it's worth considering that a successful public debut may push some investors to focus on mature startups with the potential to follow Facebook into the public markets in the next couple of years. That would benefit large, already well-funded startups like Box.net, Dropbox and AirBnB, but not necessarily younger startups whose futures are still far from certain.

Finally, some are pointing out that, flush with newly-liquid and highly-valuable stock, Facebook could help push the acquihire craze to new heights. In acquihires, larger companies like Facebook and Google buy small, young startups not for their products, but rather for their people. That's good for the well-connected investors who sometimes put in as little as five-figures for a stake in these companies, but it isn't necessarily good for entrepreneurs and the startup economy. After all, the entrepreneurs go to work for the acquirer and promising products which could be the next Facebooks usually die, leaving fewer and fewer 'good' startups to invest in.

Which brings us back to the original question: is Facebook good for the startup economy or not? As Facebook itself would say, "It's complicated."

Kategorien: e Consultancy

What we've been reading this week: US edition

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 22:53

These are some of the stories and links we’ve tweeted, posted, and passed around the office. Nothing's ever secret with us.

Now how about you? What was the most talked about video, article or spectacular blunder in your office this week?

Official 2012 Honda CR-V Game Day Commercial - "Matthew's Day Off" Extended Version

All day every day for over a week now, our heads have been filled with everything Super Bowl. We're not too sure about the new Ferris Bueller ad that Honda has released. The promo ad they did for it was perfect, but the ad itself isn't nearly funny enough. One of our team thought Broderick has lost his charisma. Another commented "Plus he's grown moobs. What does that say to their target audience? "you're getting old, give up now and buy a Honda" What do you think?

Posted on January 26, 2012

Social graph-iti: There's less to Facebook and other social networks than meets the eye

With all the talk about Facebook's IPO, we went back, way back, to see what the Economist thought about Facebook and its "social graph" 5 years ago. Very interesting comments from Google's Eric Schmidt who compared Facebook's linking and mapping of users to an address book. Pshaw.

Posted on October 19th 2007

David Choe Just Made $200 Million For Painting Facebook Office with Erotic Art in 2005

Talk about being in the right place at the right time.

Posted on February 1, 2012

The 2015 Digital Marketing Rule Book. Change or Perish

Though this came out a couple weeks ago, it may take you that long to absorb this epic post. Avinash Kaushik looks 3 years ahead to predict what our future may look like. Take a deep breath before you dive in. As one person commented: "This has made my eyes bulge and awe and the magnanimous task ahead." The UK team mentioned it as well but it was too good to not tell you again.

Posted on January 9, 2012

What Kind of Buddhist was Steve Jobs, Really?

We were in a reflective kind of mood and looked back on this post on Buddhism and Steve Jobs. "Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." Words to live by.

Posted on October 28, 2011

P&G To Lay Off 1,600 After Discovering It's Free To Advertise On Facebook

Named as a cost cutting exercise, the move to cut 1600 people seems to be rash if it is a reflection of advertising through social media. Someone has to run the accounts don't they?

Posted on January 30, 2012

Things Real People Don't Say About Advertising

Sadly this hasn't been updated for a while but these quotes should be plastered over every marketer’s desks. Or at least handed out to CMOs everywhere.

Twitter Releases Hilarious Budget Recruitment Ad

Taking recruiting into its own hands, Twitter has made something so deliberately bad, it could be classified as good. With nearly 750,000 views, someone must have thought so.

Posted on January 31, 2012

15 Free EBooks about User Experience and Interface Design

For those looking for some light reading this weekend, here are your very own list of eBooks about UX. Report due on Monday.

How do rounded corners affect usability?

In case you get through all 15 UX eBooks (link above) and don't catch this tidbit, you can read how rounded corners on buttons and containers affect usability. We know you like it.

The most painfully obvious spelling mistakes ever seen in tattoos

Remember everyone; there are worst things than a spelling error in an ad. Tattooists don't come with spell check.

Posted on January 25, 2012

Kategorien: e Consultancy

What we've been reading this week: US edition

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 22:53

These are some of the stories and links we’ve tweeted, posted, and passed around the office. Nothing's ever secret with us.

Now how about you? What was the most talked about video, article or spectacular blunder in your office this week?

Official 2012 Honda CR-V Game Day Commercial - "Matthew's Day Off" Extended Version

All day every day for over a week now, our heads have been filled with everything Super Bowl. We're not too sure about the new Ferris Bueller ad that Honda has released. The promo ad they did for it was perfect, but the ad itself isn't nearly funny enough. One of our team thought Broderick has lost his charisma. Another commented "Plus he's grown moobs. What does that say to their target audience? "you're getting old, give up now and buy a Honda" What do you think?

Posted on January 26, 2012

Social graph-iti: There's less to Facebook and other social networks than meets the eye

With all the talk about Facebook's IPO, we went back, way back, to see what the Economist thought about Facebook and its "social graph" 5 years ago. Very interesting comments from Google's Eric Schmidt who compared Facebook's linking and mapping of users to an address book. Pshaw.

Posted on October 19th 2007

David Choe Just Made $200 Million For Painting Facebook Office with Erotic Art in 2005

Talk about being in the right place at the right time.

Posted on February 1, 2012

The 2015 Digital Marketing Rule Book. Change or Perish

Though this came out a couple weeks ago, it may take you that long to absorb this epic post. Avinash Kaushik looks 3 years ahead to predict what our future may look like. Take a deep breath before you dive in. As one person commented: "This has made my eyes bulge with awe at the magnanimous task ahead." The UK team mentioned it as well but it was too good to not tell you again.

Posted on January 9, 2012

What Kind of Buddhist was Steve Jobs, Really?

We were in a reflective kind of mood and looked back on this post on Buddhism and Steve Jobs. "Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." Words to live by.

Posted on October 28, 2011

P&G To Lay Off 1,600 After Discovering It's Free To Advertise On Facebook

Named as a cost cutting exercise, the move to cut 1600 people seems to be rash if it is a reflection of advertising through social media. Someone has to run the accounts don't they?

Posted on January 30, 2012

Things Real People Don't Say About Advertising

Sadly this hasn't been updated for a while but these quotes should be plastered over every marketer’s desks. Or at least handed out to CMOs everywhere.

Twitter Releases Hilarious Budget Recruitment Ad

Taking recruiting into its own hands, Twitter has made something so deliberately bad, it could be classified as good. With nearly 750,000 views, someone must have thought so.

Posted on January 31, 2012

15 Free EBooks about User Experience and Interface Design

For those looking for some light reading this weekend, here are your very own list of eBooks about UX. Report due on Monday.

How do rounded corners affect usability?

In case you get through all 15 UX eBooks (link above) and don't catch this tidbit, you can read how rounded corners on buttons and containers affect usability. We know you like it.

The most painfully obvious spelling mistakes ever seen in tattoos

Remember everyone; there are worst things than a spelling error in an ad. Tattooists don't come with spell check.

Posted on January 25, 2012

Kategorien: e Consultancy

'Digital IQ' crucial to business: report

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 22:06

Just how important are things like mobile technology, social media and cloud computing to businesses today?

Can a business expect to survive and thrive if it doesn't stay on top of the latest trends in technology? According to a new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the answer is, not surprisingly, 'no.'

The firm's 4th Digital IQ report (PDF) involved surveying just under 500 U.S. companies with at least $500m in annual revenue, with a focus on those with more than $1bn in annual revenue. It looked at how these firms are adopting technology and addressing the "consumerization of IT."

It found that there are four key trends that are forcing executives at these companies to "rethink their strategies":

• The growth of mobile. While many companies are adopting mobile tools for their employees, just 45% are using mobile significantly to engage with their customers.
• The use of social media as a source of customer data. Despite all of the hype around social media in the past several years, well under half (37%) of the businesses PwC surveyed are investing in social media tools to interact with customers.
• The rise of public cloud-based business applications. Cloud-based applications give employees the ability do things they never could before, like perform sophisticated processes while on the go. Not surprisingly, adopting public cloud applications is something many businesses have done slowly, but PwC sees broad investment in this area in 2012 across the companies polled.
• The constant and increasingly rapid creation of data. For most businesses, data is a valuable competitive asset. The good news is that there's more and more of it. The bad news is that there's more and more of it. As PwC notes, "According to some estimates, the world today creates as much information every couple days than was created from the dawn of civilization until just a few years ago." So it's no surprise that over half (56%) of the companies participating in the 4th Digital IQ survey plan to collect more consumer data this year, and nearly half (45%) will collect more data around operational performance.

According to PwC, the good news is that "strategic IT remains a viable and vital business differentiator." The bad news is that "IT organizations that can serve customers and their firm, deliver projects on time and on budget, and distill mountains of bits into meaningful insights are as rare as ever."

To succeed, companies will increasingly need to boost their 'digital IQs' by plotting out a long-term technology strategy, mobilizing the organization to act on it and focusing on "back-to-basics" execution.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

'Digital IQ' crucial to business: report

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 22:06

Just how important are things like mobile technology, social media and cloud computing to businesses today?

Can a business expect to survive and thrive if it doesn't stay on top of the latest trends in technology? According to a new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the answer is, not surprisingly, 'no.'

The firm's 4th Digital IQ report (PDF) involved surveying just under 500 U.S. companies with at least $500m in annual revenue, with a focus on those with more than $1bn in annual revenue. It looked at how these firms are adopting technology and addressing the "consumerization of IT."

It found that there are four key trends that are forcing executives at these companies to "rethink their strategies":

• The growth of mobile. While many companies are adopting mobile tools for their employees, just 45% are using mobile significantly to engage with their customers.
• The use of social media as a source of customer data. Despite all of the hype around social media in the past several years, well under half (37%) of the businesses PwC surveyed are investing in social media tools to interact with customers.
• The rise of public cloud-based business applications. Cloud-based applications give employees the ability do things they never could before, like perform sophisticated processes while on the go. Not surprisingly, adopting public cloud applications is something many businesses have done slowly, but PwC sees broad investment in this area in 2012 across the companies polled.
• The constant and increasingly rapid creation of data. For most businesses, data is a valuable competitive asset. The good news is that there's more and more of it. The bad news is that there's more and more of it. As PwC notes, "According to some estimates, the world today creates as much information every couple days than was created from the dawn of civilization until just a few years ago." So it's no surprise that over half (56%) of the companies participating in the 4th Digital IQ survey plan to collect more consumer data this year, and nearly half (45%) will collect more data around operational performance.

According to PwC, the good news is that "strategic IT remains a viable and vital business differentiator." The bad news is that "IT organizations that can serve customers and their firm, deliver projects on time and on budget, and distill mountains of bits into meaningful insights are as rare as ever."

To succeed, companies will increasingly need to boost their 'digital IQs' by plotting out a long-term technology strategy, mobilizing the organization to act on it and focusing on "back-to-basics" execution.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Generation Y and Facebook: infographic

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 20:17

Facebook has moved beyond family and friends as shown by new research into the Facebook usage of 18-29 year olds.

After looking through four million Generation Y Facebook profiles on Identified.com's database, Millennial Branding came up with this handy infographic on how millennials use Facebook professionally.

Apparent trends include job hopping, identification by school rather than by job and high employment by startups rather than Fortune 500s.

Does this match up to how you use Facebook? Any surprises?

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Generation Y and Facebook: infographic

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 20:17

Facebook has moved beyond family and friends as shown by new research into the Facebook usage of 18-29 year olds.

After looking through four million Generation Y Facebook profiles on Identified.com's database, Millennial Branding came up with this handy infographic on how millennials use Facebook professionally.

Apparent trends include job hopping, identification by school rather than by job and high employment by startups rather than Fortune 500s.

Does this match up to how you use Facebook? Any surprises?

Kategorien: e Consultancy

AOL turns to Yahoo's ad exchange to move inventory

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 19:10

How to compete with Google in the display advertising space? Late last year, three unlikely allies, Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft, forged a pact that would allow each company to sell certain display ad inventory for the others.

At the time, Yahoo and Microsoft decided to use different ad exchanges, while AOL remained undecided.

Today, AdWeek is reporting that AOL has decided to use Yahoo's Right Media Exchange (RMX). As AdWeek notes, this is somewhat unexpected, as there was a general perception that RMX was too closely connected with Yahoo, and consequently, Microsoft's exchange partner, AppNexus, would probably wind up handling AOL's inventory:

The Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft partnership has been widely perceived as an effort to counter Google’s advertising exchange, but many expected that Microsoft’s exchange would emerge as the partnership’s primary platform with the possibility that Yahoo would sell or shut down RMX. Insiders in the ad tech world often heap praise on AppNexus' technology, while often criticizing RMX.

One big question is how this could affect AOL's ad network, Advertising.com. Advertising.com SVP David Jacobs told AdWeek that AOL's RMX agreement "provides for Advertising.com to continue to access AOL inventory for our existing advertisers while providing increased competition through additional demand sources," but it's possible that advertisers, when given the choice, will be more inclined to buy through RMX.

That said, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong doesn't appear worried, stating that, thanks in large part to "machine-learning", Advertising.com can be thought of "as more of a Goldman Sachs-type player on top of the exchanges where we spend a lot of time, energy and technology trying to figure out the value of individual things being traded and we have a proprietary set of technologies around that."

Some might suggest that Armstrong is a tad overconfident for invoking the name Goldman Sachs in his description of Advertising.com, but one thing is clear: in an effort to move inventory and compete with Google, companies like AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft will probably continue to weave increasingly tangled webs.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

AOL turns to Yahoo's ad exchange to move inventory

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 19:10

How to compete with Google in the display advertising space? Late last year, three unlikely allies, Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft, forged a pact that would allow each company to sell certain display ad inventory for the others.

At the time, Yahoo and Microsoft decided to use different ad exchanges, while AOL remained undecided.

Today, AdWeek is reporting that AOL has decided to use Yahoo's Right Media Exchange (RMX). As AdWeek notes, this is somewhat unexpected, as there was a general perception that RMX was too closely connected with Yahoo, and consequently, Microsoft's exchange partner, AppNexus, would probably wind up handling AOL's inventory:

The Yahoo, AOL and Microsoft partnership has been widely perceived as an effort to counter Google’s advertising exchange, but many expected that Microsoft’s exchange would emerge as the partnership’s primary platform with the possibility that Yahoo would sell or shut down RMX. Insiders in the ad tech world often heap praise on AppNexus' technology, while often criticizing RMX.

One big question is how this could affect AOL's ad network, Advertising.com. Advertising.com SVP David Jacobs told AdWeek that AOL's RMX agreement "provides for Advertising.com to continue to access AOL inventory for our existing advertisers while providing increased competition through additional demand sources," but it's possible that advertisers, when given the choice, will be more inclined to buy through RMX.

That said, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong doesn't appear worried, stating that, thanks in large part to "machine-learning", Advertising.com can be thought of "as more of a Goldman Sachs-type player on top of the exchanges where we spend a lot of time, energy and technology trying to figure out the value of individual things being traded and we have a proprietary set of technologies around that."

Some might suggest that Armstrong is a tad overconfident for invoking the name Goldman Sachs in his description of Advertising.com, but one thing is clear: in an effort to move inventory and compete with Google, companies like AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft will probably continue to weave increasingly tangled webs.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

P&G sheds 1,600 jobs as it cuts ad spend

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 18:27

Procter & Gamble (P&G) is to lay off 1,600 staff as part of a cost cutting exercise that will also include a re-evaluation of the company’s $10bn ad budget.

It comes as P&G chairman Robert McDonald revealed to analysts that the company had somewhat belatedly recognised the cost efficiency of digital marketing.

Under McDonald P&G’s ad spend increased by 24% over the two years up to October 2011 despite only seeing a 6% increase in sales.

According to Business Insider, McDonald told analysts that though the company had traditionally spent 9% to 11% of sales revenue on advertising: “Over time, we will see the increase in the cost of advertising moderate.”

He said that P&G was quickly moving more of its businesses into digital to take advantage of the different media channels.

In the digital space, with things like Facebook and Google and others, we find that the return on investment of the advertising, when properly designed, when the big idea is there, can be much more efficient.” 

McDonald cited the Old Spice adverts as an example of a campaign that achieved 1.8bn 'free' impressions online.

P&G’s move to digital is exactly what the company should be doing, particularly if it equates to savings - and a broader reach.

But the realisation comes quite late in the day for the world’s largest marketer, which up until now has chosen to plough a vast majority of its ad budgets into traditional ad channels.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

P&G sheds 1,600 jobs as it cuts ad spend

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 18:27

Procter & Gamble (P&G) is to lay off 1,600 staff as part of a cost cutting exercise that will also include a re-evaluation of the company’s $10bn ad budget.

It comes as P&G chairman Robert McDonald revealed to analysts that the company had somewhat belatedly recognised the cost efficiency of digital marketing.

Under McDonald P&G’s ad spend increased by 24% over the two years up to October 2011 despite only seeing a 6% increase in sales.

According to Business Insider, McDonald told analysts that though the company had traditionally spent 9% to 11% of sales revenue on advertising: “Over time, we will see the increase in the cost of advertising moderate.”

He said that P&G was quickly moving more of its businesses into digital to take advantage of the different media channels.

In the digital space, with things like Facebook and Google and others, we find that the return on investment of the advertising, when properly designed, when the big idea is there, can be much more efficient.” 

McDonald cited the Old Spice adverts as an example of a campaign that achieved 1.8bn 'free' impressions online.

P&G’s move to digital is exactly what the company should be doing, particularly if it equates to savings - and a broader reach.

But the realisation comes quite late in the day for the world’s largest marketer, which up until now has chosen to plough a vast majority of its ad budgets into traditional ad channels.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

What we've been reading this week: UK edition

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 17:55

Here are the stories and links we’ve tweeted, posted, passed around the UK office and shaken our heads at.

Check back later to get the skinny on what our US team has been reading too.

---

 

The net closes on cyber-snoopers

Ian Burrell looks closely at personalised advertising in The Independent

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

Gone Google? Got Concerns? We Have Alternatives

Microsoft’s punchy retort to Google’s new privacy guidelines.

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

Zynga CEO responds to copycat accusations from Nimblebit and others

The Verge talks to Mark Pincus

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

8 Ridiculous Examples of Press Release Fails

Copypress explores the oh-so-painful world of badly written releases.

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

For Or Against?

Vogue analyses KCD Worldwide’s digital fashion show service

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

The 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World

20 absolutely stunning examples of bookstores from Flavorwire

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

How the Sainsbury’s Customer Service Letter went viral; my theory

Laurence Borel looks into why a letter from a little girl to Sainsbury’s regarding its Tiger Bread, and the subsequent response from a store manager, went viral again this month. This week the supermarket pulled off a fabulous PR move, changing the name to 'White Giraffe Bread' as suggested by 3 (and a half) year old Lily.

Originally posted 25-Jan-12

 

The 2015 Digital Marketing Rule Book. Change or Perish.

Avinash Kaushik 2012 guide from back in January on Occam’s Razor

Originally posted 9-Jan-12

 

Usable Sites vs. Sites People Want To Use

Nick Russell highlights the differences between planning for suability – and planning for a site to be used.

Originally posted 3-Jan-12

 

Klout scores: Do they belong on résumés?

The New Post dips into the world of social media influence scores, and whether they should be used as a benchmark of success. Doing the rounds again this week.

Originally posted 14-Nov-11 

Kategorien: e Consultancy

What we've been reading this week: UK edition

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 17:55

Here are the stories and links we’ve tweeted, posted, passed around the UK office and shaken our heads at.

Check back later to get the skinny on what our US team has been reading too.

---

 

The net closes on cyber-snoopers

Ian Burrell looks closely at personalised advertising in The Independent

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

Gone Google? Got Concerns? We Have Alternatives

Microsoft’s punchy retort to Google’s new privacy guidelines.

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

Zynga CEO responds to copycat accusations from Nimblebit and others

The Verge talks to Mark Pincus

Originally posted 1-Feb-12

 

8 Ridiculous Examples of Press Release Fails

Copypress explores the oh-so-painful world of badly written releases.

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

For Or Against?

Vogue analyses KCD Worldwide’s digital fashion show service

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

The 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World

20 absolutely stunning examples of bookstores from Flavorwire

Originally posted 31-Jan-12

 

How the Sainsbury’s Customer Service Letter went viral; my theory

Laurence Borel looks into why a letter from a little girl to Sainsbury’s regarding its Tiger Bread, and the subsequent response from a store manager, went viral again this month. This week the supermarket pulled off a fabulous PR move, changing the name to 'White Giraffe Bread' as suggested by 3 (and a half) year old Lily.

Originally posted 25-Jan-12

 

The 2015 Digital Marketing Rule Book. Change or Perish.

Avinash Kaushik 2012 guide from back in January on Occam’s Razor

Originally posted 9-Jan-12

 

Usable Sites vs. Sites People Want To Use

Nick Russell highlights the differences between planning for suability – and planning for a site to be used.

Originally posted 3-Jan-12

 

Klout scores: Do they belong on résumés?

The New Post dips into the world of social media influence scores, and whether they should be used as a benchmark of success. Doing the rounds again this week.

Originally posted 14-Nov-11 

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Three steps to keeping email marketing simple but effective

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 17:01

The online space has opened up creative avenues marketers could only have dreamt about.

While you’re thinking up the latest bells and whistles to make your emails stand out, consider a few simple steps that should form the building blocks of any successful campaign.

Quick wins can be gained from analysing the time you send your communications; finessing the sender address and subject line; and, most importantly, testing your messages. 

1. "Test! Test! Test!” should be a mantra for all email marketers

Ensuring you hit your audience with relevant, personalised and timely messaging is crucial. Think of it like a driving test. All the theory in the world, the hours spent memorising the Highway Code, won’t help you when you’re out on the road.

The only way to pass that test is to practice.

In order to hone the effectiveness of email, delve into all the precious data you collect on the people you’re trying to reach, to provoke them into action.

Take insights from people’s preferences and purchase history (if available), and experiment with length and tone of subject lines, and different types of content.

Consider HTML, the length of copy, size and colour of images, embedded links and video. Even the choice of vocabulary and use of punctuation are important elements in avoiding the spam trap (don’t over exaggerate by using too many exclamation marks!!!!).

Continuous testing and data analysis will enable you to tweak your strategy for communication and additionally provide greater insight into your consumer segments and how they respond to your communications.

As a result, you can begin to segment your audience in more detail and refine and personalise the types of content you send them. It’s important to use the data to understand the likes and dislikes of individuals to boost brand advocacy.

Compare the results of your email tests 

For example, subject line length, type of offer or call to action included, or response to keywords used, with metrics for your website, SEO and PPC, mobile engagement and offline activities, and you will begin to see trends.

Which targets were receptive? Which didn't respond? Is the offer right? An in-depth analysis of campaign responses enables you to improve effectiveness and optimise the return on investment.

This information can then be used to strengthen knowledge of the target audience, influencing future communication strategies and marketing plans.

Testing means making the most of data to devise and send your campaigns, and the virtuous circle will be completed by response data that underpins improved email marketing the next time out.

Amazingly, we’re beginning to see marketing plans change every quarter and in some instances every 30 days! All the more reason to “test, test, test” to see how your audience is engaging with your brand and to ensure you keep ahead of the pack.

2. Time of day

People engage with brands in many different ways, so there isn’t always a “one size fits all” approach to timing. It’s important that you review the data in detail to find the optimum time to target people.

Don’t just look at how many people opened your emails, look at who opened them and when.

As a rule of thumb, many marketers send emails between 7am and 10:30am, targeting subscribers as they wake up in the morning or when they reach the office.

Another popular distribution time is noon, to engage people during lunch breaks, or early evening when users typically jump back online to purchase the goods they have been researching in the office.

To be honest, these times have collectively shown good results for most brands, but to really ensure you reach your targets at the right time, look at your response data and the time stamp on your opens (also compare this to the ‘delivered’ time to analyse the gap between send and open, you may be surprised to see some of your emails being opened 3 to 4 days later).

Finally, you can cross-reference the email address and offer code to understand how effective your email communication was in driving revenue.

An example of good practice was the activity of an online retailer which used an innovative tactic to work out the ideal time to send emails to individual users.

Their theory was that if users were available to sign up to an email list at a certain time, they would be more receptive to receiving an email at the same time on subsequent days.

The company’s campaigns resulted in 20% uplift in click-through, approximately 65% increase in conversion and average revenue per recipient boosted by almost 200%.

On the flip side to ‘push’ email campaigns are customer-initiated interactions. Responding to these with immediate and relevant messages and offers, again implemented through the use of existing data, can greatly enhance the relationship and strengthen loyalty.

3. From and subject lines

These are two very important elements. The first thing a subscriber will do is scan the 'from' address to ensure the email is being delivered by a reputable source (i.e. a brand they recognise) then they perform a final pass on the subject line.

Subjects need to be punchy and enticing, short and simple (try to keep it to less than 50 characters). It is important to ensure that you include some type of personalisation and the organisation’s name.

Try to keep the WIFM (What’s In It For Me?) front of mind, as people generally respond well to “Offer”, “Sale”, “Attention” and “Invitation”.

Not all communications are about sending offers, so if this is the case make sure there is a value exchange and that the intent of the email is clearly stated, e.g. “Company Name Newsletter: December 2012” or “Company Name Newsletter: Important Information”.

Ultimately, a combination of context and content is vital to drive successful email communications.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

Three steps to keeping email marketing simple but effective

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 17:01

The online space has opened up creative avenues marketers could only have dreamt about.

While you’re thinking up the latest bells and whistles to make your emails stand out, consider a few simple steps that should form the building blocks of any successful campaign.

Quick wins can be gained from analysing the time you send your communications; finessing the sender address and subject line; and, most importantly, testing your messages. 

1. "Test! Test! Test!” should be a mantra for all email marketers

Ensuring you hit your audience with relevant, personalised and timely messaging is crucial. Think of it like a driving test. All the theory in the world, the hours spent memorising the Highway Code, won’t help you when you’re out on the road.

The only way to pass that test is to practice.

In order to hone the effectiveness of email, delve into all the precious data you collect on the people you’re trying to reach, to provoke them into action.

Take insights from people’s preferences and purchase history (if available), and experiment with length and tone of subject lines, and different types of content.

Consider HTML, the length of copy, size and colour of images, embedded links and video. Even the choice of vocabulary and use of punctuation are important elements in avoiding the spam trap (don’t over exaggerate by using too many exclamation marks!!!!).

Continuous testing and data analysis will enable you to tweak your strategy for communication and additionally provide greater insight into your consumer segments and how they respond to your communications.

As a result, you can begin to segment your audience in more detail and refine and personalise the types of content you send them. It’s important to use the data to understand the likes and dislikes of individuals to boost brand advocacy.

Compare the results of your email tests 

For example, subject line length, type of offer or call to action included, or response to keywords used, with metrics for your website, SEO and PPC, mobile engagement and offline activities, and you will begin to see trends.

Which targets were receptive? Which didn't respond? Is the offer right? An in-depth analysis of campaign responses enables you to improve effectiveness and optimise the return on investment.

This information can then be used to strengthen knowledge of the target audience, influencing future communication strategies and marketing plans.

Testing means making the most of data to devise and send your campaigns, and the virtuous circle will be completed by response data that underpins improved email marketing the next time out.

Amazingly, we’re beginning to see marketing plans change every quarter and in some instances every 30 days! All the more reason to “test, test, test” to see how your audience is engaging with your brand and to ensure you keep ahead of the pack.

2. Time of day

People engage with brands in many different ways, so there isn’t always a “one size fits all” approach to timing. It’s important that you review the data in detail to find the optimum time to target people.

Don’t just look at how many people opened your emails, look at who opened them and when.

As a rule of thumb, many marketers send emails between 7am and 10:30am, targeting subscribers as they wake up in the morning or when they reach the office.

Another popular distribution time is noon, to engage people during lunch breaks, or early evening when users typically jump back online to purchase the goods they have been researching in the office.

To be honest, these times have collectively shown good results for most brands, but to really ensure you reach your targets at the right time, look at your response data and the time stamp on your opens (also compare this to the ‘delivered’ time to analyse the gap between send and open, you may be surprised to see some of your emails being opened 3 to 4 days later).

Finally, you can cross-reference the email address and offer code to understand how effective your email communication was in driving revenue.

An example of good practice was the activity of an online retailer which used an innovative tactic to work out the ideal time to send emails to individual users.

Their theory was that if users were available to sign up to an email list at a certain time, they would be more receptive to receiving an email at the same time on subsequent days.

The company’s campaigns resulted in 20% uplift in click-through, approximately 65% increase in conversion and average revenue per recipient boosted by almost 200%.

On the flip side to ‘push’ email campaigns are customer-initiated interactions. Responding to these with immediate and relevant messages and offers, again implemented through the use of existing data, can greatly enhance the relationship and strengthen loyalty.

3. From and subject lines

These are two very important elements. The first thing a subscriber will do is scan the 'from' address to ensure the email is being delivered by a reputable source (i.e. a brand they recognise) then they perform a final pass on the subject line.

Subjects need to be punchy and enticing, short and simple (try to keep it to less than 50 characters). It is important to ensure that you include some type of personalisation and the organisation’s name.

Try to keep the WIFM (What’s In It For Me?) front of mind, as people generally respond well to “Offer”, “Sale”, “Attention” and “Invitation”.

Not all communications are about sending offers, so if this is the case make sure there is a value exchange and that the intent of the email is clearly stated, e.g. “Company Name Newsletter: December 2012” or “Company Name Newsletter: Important Information”.

Ultimately, a combination of context and content is vital to drive successful email communications.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

US job moves: Mercedes-Benz, Sony, Dow Jones, Apple, Dell

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 16:53

It's Friday and with that comes our coverage of the big moves, hires and fires in the US this week.

We've seen promotions from Mercedes-Benz and Sony, while News Corp. has poached a new CEO for Dow Jones and Apple and Dell are looking to expand their retail and software services with new prominent hires.

News Corp. brings former Bloomberg Ventures CEO Lex Fenwick in as the new CEO of Dow Jones to fill the role Les Hinton left in July. This marks Fenwick’s first move after a 25 year career at Bloomberg.

Mercedes-Benz USA has appointed Bernhard Glaser as Vice President of Marketing. He will be responsible for market research, marketing communications, and product management of the Mercedes-Benz and Maybach brands in the US.

Sony promotes Kazuo Hirai to President and CEO to replace Howard Stringer effective from April. Stringer will retain a place on the board.

As reported by our UK team, Apple hires former Dixons CEO John Browett as their retail chief. He is joining just as Apple enters the planning phase of a new prototype Apple store in Palo Alto and will be responsible for their global retail efforts.

Dell has brought on former CEO of Computer Associates, John Swainson, to run their new Software Unit. He formerly rejected a similar role from HP.

TMS International Corp., the leading provider of steel mill industrial services, has named Dr. Sara Hornby as the Director of Marketing - Optimization Group. Hornby was formally a principal at Global Strategic Solutions.

Outdoor Channel Holdings appointed Tom Allen as Chief Operating Officer as an expansion of his role as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Telmar Group, advertising media software and services provider, has promoted Corey Panno to President of the company to replace Chairman and CEO Stanley Federman

Fenton created their first dedicated marketing role with the promotion of Susan McPherson to Director of Global Marketing. McPherson has been senior vice president at Fenton's for 20 months and was previously vice president of CSR services at PR Newswire

SquareTrade hires former Hotwire CMO, Ty Shay, as their new Chief Marketing Officer. Before Hotwire, Shay has a history of growing brands such as Esurance, Clorox and Procter & Gamble.

Kategorien: e Consultancy

US job moves: Mercedes-Benz, Sony, Dow Jones, Apple, Dell

eConsultancy - Fr, 02/03/2012 - 16:53

It's Friday and with that comes our coverage of the big moves, hires and fires in the US this week.

We've seen promotions from Mercedes-Benz and Sony, while News Corp. has poached a new CEO for Dow Jones and Apple and Dell are looking to expand their retail and software services with new prominent hires.

News Corp. brings former Bloomberg Ventures CEO Lex Fenwick in as the new CEO of Dow Jones to fill the role Les Hinton left in July. This marks Fenwick’s first move after a 25 year career at Bloomberg.

Mercedes-Benz USA has appointed Bernhard Glaser as Vice President of Marketing. He will be responsible for market research, marketing communications, and product management of the Mercedes-Benz and Maybach brands in the US.

Sony promotes Kazuo Hirai to President and CEO to replace Howard Stringer effective from April. Stringer will retain a place on the board.

As reported by our UK team, Apple hires former Dixons CEO John Browett as their retail chief. He is joining just as Apple enters the planning phase of a new prototype Apple store in Palo Alto and will be responsible for their global retail efforts.

Dell has brought on former CEO of Computer Associates, John Swainson, to run their new Software Unit. He formerly rejected a similar role from HP.

TMS International Corp., the leading provider of steel mill industrial services, has named Dr. Sara Hornby as the Director of Marketing - Optimization Group. Hornby was formally a principal at Global Strategic Solutions.

Outdoor Channel Holdings appointed Tom Allen as Chief Operating Officer as an expansion of his role as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Telmar Group, advertising media software and services provider, has promoted Corey Panno to President of the company to replace Chairman and CEO Stanley Federman

Fenton created their first dedicated marketing role with the promotion of Susan McPherson to Director of Global Marketing. McPherson has been senior vice president at Fenton's for 20 months and was previously vice president of CSR services at PR Newswire

SquareTrade hires former Hotwire CMO, Ty Shay, as their new Chief Marketing Officer. Before Hotwire, Shay has a history of growing brands such as Esurance, Clorox and Procter & Gamble.

Kategorien: e Consultancy