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The Pepsi vs. Coke social good smackdown

By on March 4, 2010 in branding, cause marketing, socially responsible

When Coke and Pepsi start being judged by their social responsibility as much as their taste (and their ads), you’ll know Responsible Marketing has arrived, right? Well, that time has come. The Huffington Post recently ran an online poll pitting Pepsi’s Refresh Project Vs. Coke’s Live Positively campaigns. The associated article does a great job [...]

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How Ford made me reconsider my auto buying habits

By on May 27, 2009 in authenticity, branding, digital marketing, launch, social media, social networking, strategically responsible, videos, word of mouth

I’ve owned dozens of cars, and like a lot of people, most have been Japanese or German. So when I turned in my leased Honda and started the hunt for a new hybrid, I drove the Toyota Prius, Camry and Highlander Hybrids, the new Honda Insight and a Lexus RX 400h. The Prius felt underpowered [...]

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Skittles Twitter homepage: Responsible or not?

By on March 3, 2009 in authenticity, branding, responsible or not?, social media, social networking, word of mouth

Skittles, the chewy, fruit-flavored candy from Mars, Inc. has jumped into social media in an innovative new way: They have coded their website so their navigation now floats over three of the most popular social media websites. Skittles.com is now nothing more than a navigation box floating over the Twitter search results for the term [...]

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A-Rod deals another blow to the MLB brand

By on February 10, 2009 in branding, ethics, no trust, truth, videos

View this video on YouTube Few professional athletes have ever been bigger than George Herman “Babe” Ruth. His achievements on the baseball field were epic, garnering him the nicknames “The Sultan of Swat,” “The Colossus of Clout,” “The Titan of Terror,” “The King of Crash,” and of course, “The Great Bambino.” Arguably, the greatest player [...]

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Is smoking bad for your business?

By on February 3, 2009 in branding, customer delight, economy, word of mouth

We all know smoking is bad for your health, but is it bad for your business, too? Here are three examples where, at the very least, the customer experience was damaged by a company’s lackadaisical smoking policies: Yesterday, two of my co-workers saw a cool bakery truck that caught their attention. The driver had on [...]

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Marketing, advertising and PR are not equals

By on December 23, 2008 in branding, broken marketing, strategically responsible

I love and hate this: I love it because of it’s simple, it’s funny and it’s true. But I hate it because it perpetuates the myth that marketing, advertising and PR are all in some way equals. They aren’t. Let me explain: You meet two people at a holiday party: Beth works in the marketing [...]

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Burger King Flame: Body spray of seduction

By on December 19, 2008 in branding, creativity, viral marketing, word of mouth

Burger King—fresh from a beating in the blogosphere for their Whopper Virgins campaign—has snapped back. They’re back on brand with the King and Burger King Flame, the “body spray of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat.” Yes, it’s real, but it’s sold out. Of course, it’s not about the body spray, it’s about creating [...]

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I want a 404 goat. You should too.

By on December 10, 2008 in branding, creativity, fun, usability

The dreaded 404 Not Found message. Not quite the blue screen of death, but definitely unwelcome when you are trying to find something on the Internet. The 404 page isn’t something you are looking for—it’s a web page you typically receive when you land on a page that’s been deleted or removed. From a marketing [...]

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Is Whistler-Blackcomb email marketing responsible?

By on November 26, 2008 in branding, execution responsible, message responsible, responsible or not?

On Monday, I received a message from Whistler Blackcomb to inform me of the open dates for each of the mountains. I don’t recall signing up to receive these notifications, but I was there last season and might have provided my email address somewhere to someone. No matter. I didn’t mind receiving the message, and [...]

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McDonald’s zags with new concept store

By on November 21, 2008 in branding, creativity, innovation, simplicity

At a time when most companies are looking for ways to extend their brand to gain a greater share of the customer’s wallet, McDonalds has “secretly” introduced Quarter Pounder, a new concept store in Japan that sells only Quarter Pounders. That’s right, you can get a Quarter Pounder, or a Double Quarter Pounder, fries and [...]

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Will the economy kill creativity?

By on November 20, 2008 in branding, creativity, roi responsible, strategically responsible, videos

Breaking through the clutter amid consumer cynicism and information overload requires creativity. Creativity comes in all forms. It can be beautiful, disturbing, fascinating, shocking, heartwarming, awe-inspiring, scary, fun—you get the point. We all know that creativity isn’t always easy to sell. Sometimes it’s the budget. Other times it’s inertia. But whatever it is, experiencing something [...]

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Amazon begins initiative to reduce packaging

By on November 14, 2008 in branding, creativity, environmentally responsible, word of mouth

Great packaging can be the difference between success and failure for some products. As marketers, it’s our responsibility to make sure the products we are marketing are packaged in a way that merchandises well, is easy to display, and showcases its best features on the shelf—especially when stacked up against the competition. Creative packaging reinforces [...]

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Marketing lessons from Barack Obama

By on November 5, 2008 in branding, casting responsible, competition, innovation, multicultural marketing, positioning, social media, social networking, videos, viral marketing, word of mouth

Whether you are red or blue, you can’t deny Barack Obama’s marketing prowess. Here are a few lessons every organization should consider when they are seeking ‘votes’ from prospects: Develop strategies based on consumer insights. The Obama campaign clearly understood where America was hurting most, and developed strategies in response. Build an organization that can [...]

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Three fun videos that prove less is more

By on October 14, 2008 in branding, fun, simplicity, videos

Here are three entertaining videos that illustrate why, when it comes to communications—whether it’s copy, design, color or imagery—simplicity rules: The Process shows what happens when corporate marketers tackle a simple problem: With apologies to our smart friends at Microsoft who know better, here’s a video called Microsoft designs the iPod package: Make my Logo [...]

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Bite-sized Friday: Smart, smarter, smartest

By on October 3, 2008 in branding, creativity, environmentally responsible, word of mouth

____________ SMART An embeddable collection of Fortune 500 logos, tagged with words like “logotype”, “symbol” and “acronym” to make it helpful to sort through different variations and approaches to design. A useful tool for creative inspiration and competitive intel: Via Todd Andrlik on Twitter ____________ SMARTER In Brainy Brand Names Where They’re Least Expected, Stuart [...]

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Is PETA’s use of nudity going too far?

By on September 23, 2008 in branding, morality, sex sells, Uncategorized, videos, word of mouth

Whether you support their cause or not, it’s impossible to ignore PETA. Their undercover investigations and campaigns are orchestrated across all media—advertising, PR, events, and social media are all a part of the mix—and most are integrated quite well. The way they get attention is always controversial, and they’ve taken on some of the titans [...]

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Are you looking for love in all the wrong places?

By on September 22, 2008 in authenticity, branding, digital marketing, social media, social networking, videos, viral marketing, word of mouth

I wish people didn’t call it “new media” anymore. It’s just media. But unlike television, radio and print, this media is created by you, me, your co-workers—maybe even your mom. It’s a conversation that brings you closer to the customer than ever before at a time when recent research has shown that 86% of consumers [...]

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Apple responds to censorship challenge

By on August 4, 2008 in branding, message responsible, socially responsible

Last week, Gawker reported that Apple had censored the cigarette from the Mad Men page on iTunes (see above). For a split second, I thought it was a good thing. I don’t smoke and couldn’t have been happier when Washington State’s Clean Indoor Air Act took effect. But then I realized just how wrong taking [...]

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