Advertising - Summer Silliness Brings a Pizza Field and a Giant Oreo - NYTimes.com
OUTDOOR advertising is a growing category — not just billboards, but increasingly, weird publicity stunts that often go awry.
“Advertisers are being pushed to creative extremes, partly because
it’s just so difficult to get consumers’ attention these days,” said
Pete Blackshaw, executive vice president of Nielsen Online Digital
Strategic Services, which advises clients on managing their online
reputations. “It may just be a flash of brilliance that everyone pays
attention to, and it gets that huge return, but it’s very difficult to
replicate on a regular basis.”
Advertisers spent $7.3 billion on
outdoor ads last year, a rise of 7 percent from 2006, according to the
Outdoor Advertising Association of America. About 16 percent of that
fell in the “alternative” category, which covers ads that were not on
billboards, bus shelters or the like.
August 1, 2008
Study: Skinny Women Better for Bottom Line - Advertising Age - News
Women who view ads featuring thin models are likely to come away with both a positive impression of the product being marketed and negative feelings about themselves, according to a study of 194 college-aged women. “The really interesting result we’re seeing across multiple studies is that these thin models make women feel bad, but they like it,” said a Villanova business professor.
July 31, 2008
Black women embrace tech gadgets
Five times as many black women — 36%– use cell phones for three or more hours a day compared to other women, according to research by Time Inc.’s Essence magazine. Black women also spend more extended time using iPods, computers, high-definition TVs and DVD players. The findings defy an image of technology consumers focused on young men, says Carmen Bryant, director of consumer research for the magazine.
Black women use technology to gain control over their lives, but also see it as a way to express style and personality, Bryant says.
The survey found 42% of black women report spending $100 to $499 or more on cell phones compared to 26% of other women. Black women also embrace new mobile technology, with 21% of them using cell phone Web browsers to make purchases compared to 8% of other women.
Bryant says it’s important for electronics marketers to recognize these women as influential consumers. “They tend to be the primary decision makers in households, in part because two thirds of African-American households are led by women,” she says.
July 30, 2008
Blogging’s Glass Ceiling - NYTimes.com
Last weekend, about a thousand bloggers, almost all without the Y chromosome, attended the annual BlogHer conference, which began in 2005 to help female bloggers gain exposure. It has since evolved into a corporate-sponsored Oprah-inflected version of a ’60s consciousness-raising group.
July 28, 2008
A Means for Publishers to Put a Newspaper in Your Pocket - NYTimes.com
Verve Wireless believes it can save the dying local newspaper by making it mobile. It offers publishers the technology to create Web sites for cellphones. The company, based in Encinitas, Calif., already provides mobile versions of 4,000 newspapers from 140 publishers, including Freedom Communications, the McClatchy Company and The New York Times Company’s Regional Media Group. The Associated Press, its biggest customer, is betting that Verve has the solution to the nagging problem of dwindling print readership. It led a $3 million round of financing in Verve, a rare investment for the news organization.
July 28, 2008
The 2.0 world is evolving rapidly, creating new promotions and
marketing opportunities such as RSS feeds, podcasting, blogging,
talking avatars and widgets everywhere.
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Keeping Pace: The Evolution of Marketing and Branding
In the digital space, the world of marketing and branding is constantly changing. New technology developments are prompting companies to take a fresh look at the ways they reach and interact with their vendors and customers.
April 29, 2008
The magazines Rolling Stone and Men’s Health are testing programs in
which readers can take cameraphone pictures of icons on ads to receive
more information or an offer from the advertiser.
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Take a Picture of an Ad, Earn a Reward - New York Times
Two men’s magazines are trying to engage their readers more — by increasing their cellphone bills.
Rolling Stone and Men’s Health are both testing programs in which
readers can take cameraphone pictures of icons on ads, then send them
to a certain number. In exchange, they’ll receive more information or
an offer from the advertiser.
April 28, 2008
Honda is working the dog-friendly angle with its Element.
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MediaPost Publications - Honda Takes Cue From DogCars.com - 03/13/2008
HONDA’S AGENCY, RPA, TOOK A recommendation its client got for its Element car from a dog lover’s Web site and turned it into an ad. Now the agency is running the spot online on a variety of canine-related Web properties.
In December, DogCars.com named the Honda Element “DogCar of the Year.” The agency responded with an ad, “Pointer,” targeting 18- to-49-year-old males with an active, outdoor mindset.
March 13, 2008
