We’re attending the Word of Mouth Crash Course

Grant Thekan, one of our senior digital strategists, packed his bags and hopped a plane to Austin, Texas, early this morning for a conference we’re sure will bring both energy and insights to Bader Rutter and our clients.

The Word of Mouth Marketing Crash Course is one day jam-packed with 12 how-to classes, 12 case studies from big brands (including Costco, Domino’s, Boeing and Maker’s Mark) and six amazing authors. Have you seen the books Grant received before the conference? These @WOMorg people really mean business!

Follow Grant tweeting from the conference (@TosaRover), and look for a blog post next week.

Resurrecting and reimagining: The "Hilltop" Coke ad 40 years later

In the marketing communications world, we are always pushing for the new idea, latest concept and that fresh look. But there are times when we need to look at what has been successful in the past and “re-imagine” the wheel to garner strong consumer branding power. 

The “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” ad created four decades ago turned into a full-length song and quickly became a No. 1 hit single. Last year, I wrote about the 40th anniversary of the ad, noting the power of audio in advertising. The song was a brilliant marketing hug to the world and increased Coke’s presence among consumers.

And it’s back.

But this time, the ad has been spun with a modern audience in mind, using interactive digital technology in a new venue that could set the precedent for marketing campaigns in the next several years. With Google’s “Project Re: Brief,” the re-imagined ad enables a new generation of Coke-lovers to actually “buy the world a Coke” from their computer or phone.

At kiosks placed around the globe, users can select a location for delivery, attach a personal video or text message, and then watch as the Coke is “delivered” to a friend or stranger via a specially-designed vending machine on the other side of the world. The

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Is there a Target on your back?

You’ve likely heard rumblings about a recent NYT investigative piece exposing the inner workings of the major national retailer Target.

The article details how the chain allegedly identified a certain mix of products that, when purchased, are able to predict with 87 percent accuracy whether a female customer is pregnant. Want to guess what the products are? A large purse that’s big enough to double as a diaper bag and lotion, to name a few.

As a result of this knowledge, the retailer has secured a huge advantage by being the first to “target” this consumer with offers aimed at ensuring brand loyalty once the baby is born. That is, assuming she doesn’t get upset when she figures out how they’ve targeted her.

To do this, the retailer supposedly leverages a guest profile that tracks every interaction a person has with the store — from which items they’ve purchased (tracked by credit card numbers) to whether they’ve interacted with customer service or ever set up a gift registry there. Supplementary data purchased by Target also helps to round out demographic details.

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No, but/Yes, and

Seth Goden strikes again. Take a look at this recent blog post, titled “No.”

He doesn’t take a position in this post. But it’s certainly thought-provoking, which was his point, I’m sure. It’s easy to see the allure of saying “no” and standing firm. If you say “yes,” you might lower the bar and have to perform limbolike acrobatics to achieve your

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B2B losing the laggard label in digital marketing — leads use of Twitter

Rally all you B2B marketers around this nice infographic from the 2011 Webmarketing123 State of Digital Marketing Survey because it’s a great peek into the changing worlds of B2B and B2C. Notably, this is the second data set I’ve seen in the last week where B2B can be classified as in the lead for some digital marketing segments.

SEO is King
It’s interesting that arguably one of the oldest and most mature segments of digital marketing — SEO — is cited as the one that both B2B and B2C marketers agree has the biggest impact on

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So, what are your QR codes doing tonight?

In the past year, in large part due to its simplicity, low cost of implementation, and shiny-new-thing factor, QR codes have appeared everywhere. In marketing, we can use QR codes to our advantage in that critical blink of an eye we call conversion.

It seems everyone has been slapping QR codes on packaging, signage and collateral – even taking over entire buildings. But have they been effective? It depends.

Demystifying the QR code
QR codes actually date back to 1994, when they were developed by a Toyota subsidiary. They’re nothing more than one of the next generation bar code formats, with the ability to store more information. Their purpose is to simplify a request or transaction.

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Google+ Circles: Thoughts on fragmentation and social sharing

Google says G+ Circles equals privacy, and that privacy leads to an enhanced social experience. But does it?

Most people have many interests in their lives. Interests that have something to do with a career, or interests that many prefer to keep separate from work. Is who we are at work different from who we are at home? Maybe. Maybe not. It likely comes down to your own personality and how you prefer to reach out to people.

Entities like Facebook and Twitter make it difficult for one to selectively share within our networks. So if we decide to share something, it goes to all our “friends.” But what if your friends include your boss, your clients, your 79-year-old Aunt, your ex, your kid, your spouse, distant friends, your actual friends that you truly consider a friend and your neighbors?

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Taking a cue from Minor League Baseball

“The Goonies’” Chunk (Jeff Cohen) does the truffle shuffle. Cohen participated in a promotion with the Lakewood BlueClaws last summer.The Peoria Chiefs, a minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, recently honored LeBron James and his failed attempt at winning his elusive first NBA title. The Chiefs gave each attendee to a recent game a replica of James’ NBA championship ring. Of course, this imitation consisted of nothing more than a fingerful of air.

This promotional stunt marked a continuation of an extensive game of one-upmanship among marketing departments throughout Minor League Baseball. These folks work in an industry that seemingly has no boundaries. No promotion is too outlandish. Absurdity, if anything, is encouraged.

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Engaging target audiences is good, connecting is better

Like a model train, creating connections is key in relationship-building with target audiences.
Train by Kato USA/Photo copyright 2011 Model Retailer “Engagement” is one of the biggest buzzwords in marketing communications today. Simply put, there are more and greater opportunities than ever before to exchange information with target audiences.

But while I agree that engaging target audiences in discussion is crucial to learning about their needs and heading off problems, I also think it’s just the beginning. There is an extra step that can further separate a business and a brand from the competition.

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Marcom A to Z – V for Variable Data Publishing

Raise your hand if your company has a store room or file cabinet housing boxes of printed collateral pieces. Now consider the return on that printing investment. (Yikes.)

Producing large quantities of materials makes sense for immediate, planned use. But another approach may guarantee a longer lifespan for collateral pieces, particularly if a piece is used for varied audiences or functions. If customized content would increase the use and value of your collateral, create a marketing storefront that enables users to create more relevant materials. Consider variable data publishing (VDP).

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Marcom A to Z – T for Transformation

“…It’s all about transformation, about taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary. That’s magic. And any chef, speaking honestly, will tell you, you don’t necessarily have to be a magician to make magic.” Transformation. It’s been on my mind.

I’ve pulled this quote from my most recent culinary obsession, Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles Cookbook. Bourdain, of TV’s No Reservations and occasional Top Chef fame, writes like a beat poet high on his choice of drugs – the magic of basic ingredients transformed into mouthwatering soul food, or a cold dining room turned bustling brasserie as hungry guests are enlivened by food, drink and conversation.

I like what Bourdain is getting at here – that transformation is an outcome that can be influenced but not entirely controlled. There’s something organic that occurs. A little magic.

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Are blogs dying?

Has blogging become a thing of the past? With Facebook and Twitter’s ever-rising popularity do people prefer short snippets of information over “long-form” blog entries? According to a new Pew Research Center study published in The New York Times, the answer depends on who you’re trying to reach.

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Branding is nuts

I recently read the Forbes article “Comeback Brands of 2011” which lists 10 well-known consumer brands poised for a comeback this year. These brands never went away; they just lost the public eye. Why? All brands struggle to stay fresh; if they can’t they are in trouble. The comeback brands—including Chevrolet, Levi’s, Pert, and Planters Peanuts—failed to maintain a dialogue with their audiences, they failed to keep the conversation going. That’s why they need to make a comeback.    

What unites them is their effort to tap into nostalgia branding. When we reflect on our past, we tend to have warm memories and positive associations. Our attitudes toward brands are no different. All of the brands featured in the article have long histories and hope to evoke their past brand equity while making it relevant for today. The result aims to reconnect with older audiences while attracting new ones. 

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Teach the world to sing…about your product or service

Forty years ago this month, an idea blossomed into a television commercial jingle that would capture an important era in history and help define a generation.
 
Written in January 1971 in less than 24 hours for a Coca-Cola radio spot, “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” was originally sung by The New Seekers. Later that year, Coca-Cola brought the song to life in a television commercial filmed on an Italian hillside with a diverse crowd of 500 extras. After hitting the airwaves, the jingle became so popular that a full-length version of the song was quickly produced, renamed, “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing.” The tune quickly climbed the charts to become a No. 1 hit single. Another group, The Hillside Singers, released a second recording of the song. In one year, both groups sold a combined 1 million records of the song.

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Marcom A to Z – Q for Questions

Forgive the inner nerd a moment when I admit that a complex spreadsheet filled with data and metrics is an analytic’s dream. Similarly, a complex idea or marcom program can seem quite brilliant for its detail. In fact, it may be. But brilliance is best communicated with simplicity, and clarity.

And so, alongside more than a dozen New Year’s resolutions (go big or go home), I hereby resolve in 2011 to embrace clarity.

From a planning standpoint, I think clarity can be achieved by answering seven questions well. Six of them we learned in kindergarten. The seventh is my personal favorite and often the arbiter of good, better, best. As with achieving clarity itself, these questions seem deceptively simple.

I resolve to inch toward an Apple-esque philosophy for living and working. For one, I’ll create more pictures, fewer words. Here’s picture number one — with questions. Can you answer them for your latest initiative?

(click to see full image)