Marketing, Communications and The (Financial) Media

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Marketing, Communications and The Media...

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Product Placement: Its Just Infotainment

While screenwriters, TV writers and other "ethical artists" have been balking at the notion of incorporating subliminal and not-so subliminal product placement ads and messages into scripts, Gail Collins from the New York Times opines today on whether that war is worth waging at all.

Especially when wages (and ad revenue) is so hard to come by in this new period of economic reflection. I was actually intrigued by Gail's take on on the topic (click the link to read her column), but...

My opinion? Am I insulted when I see a Starbucks coffee cup sitting in front of a news anchorperson? Or does it bother me that the producers of Boston Legal are getting paid for William Shatner to pitch Viagra?

Nah! Its all fair and fun, and it doesn't lead me to say "How could they do something as unethical as pitch a product on the news or within the script of a favorite TV show??"

Next question: Does it influence me to buy the product that's subliminally promoted? Nah. Not yet anyway. But, I'm a lousy shopper, especially these days.

Last question: Will these types of product placements have a negative impact on the brand?
I'll leave that to the rocket scientists that analyze consumer behavior. My guess is the answer is "no". I'm actually waiting for some pharmaceutical company to invent a pill that triggers visuals of certain products when the brain sends a mood change message.

Capturing Eyeballs: Stimulus Packages For Shock and Awe

Do I have your attention? You bet I do.

And, if you're like 95% of those that we canvassed, you're going to look at both of these photos for at least 45 seconds. (photo credits to Ed Cameron at Air New Zealand and to FeelUnique.com) And you're going to tell at least two people to come to this blog and take a look.

The eyeball catching strategies aren't necessarily new. But they are fun.
And, they're extremely low cost to implement. (Shaving cream and a razor cost $2/person, and you can hire human billboards for as little as a slice of pizza)
And, they create buzz.
And, the recall rates jump off the charts.


The full story is courtesy of the Feb 17 edition of the NY Times...Good coverage credit belongs to NYT Advertising columnist Andy Newman

What Advertising Vehicle Really Works Best?

As advertisers carry on the debate over the next great marketing medium, a study released by the Advertising Specialty Institute found that it's not TV, print or radio that is grabbing customers attention the best; but promotional items.

One of the riveting results of the survey-- the cost basis for eye-ball catching, long-lasting (durable), utility-centric premiums is as low as 4/10 of a penny.

Not a $40 CPM, not a $4 CPM, not a $.40 CPM... but a fraction of a penny...

And, prescient pundits that we are, merely a month ago, we profiled a brilliant premium idea; the Laptop Cabana from MGS Brands



The ASI survey asked 600 participants (mostly over the age of 21) to recall promotional items received over the last 12 months and their effect on their purchasing habits. Key points raised by the study were:

• 8/10 respondents remembered a brand based on a product they had received.
• 24% said that they were more likely to do business with an advertiser based on items they receive
• Nearly 2/3 indicated they had done business with an advertiser after receiving a promotional gift.
• 80% of promotional items were kept as they were considered useful.

These statistics concluded that marketers get a more favorable return on investment from CPI, significant recollection amongst those who received promotional gifts, and improved purpose amongst recipients to make purchases from the promoter.

Crisis Management: When All Else is Failing (?)

We don't often copy and paste private emails, but somehow this wound up in the wrong blackberry. We can't verify whether its real or not, but gee whiz...since it seems like every IR expert across the country has been laid off by their corporate employers, maybe there's something to the approach below?


NEWS ALERT from The Wall Street Journal

The White House's nominee for director of the CIA, Leon Panetta, has earned more than $700,000 in speaking and consulting fees since the beginning of 2008, with some of the payments coming from troubled banks and an investment firm that owns companies that do business with federal national security agencies. Panetta is set to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday about his nomination.

FROM: The Office of The President of The United States

TO:Mr. Mark Murph, CEO LeadershipIQ

Dear Mr. Murphy-

As you can see from yet the latest news story profiling the blunders being made by my SVP of HR, I've decided to fire my current HR director and I'm hoping that you'd be interested in the job?

I thought at first it might have been the job application forms that were being used, but I discovered this morning that nobody was actually even looking at the forms. Probably because we had brought some people over from the SEC to help with the vetting process and review the documents. I'm correcting that issue too; we've offered Harry Markopolos the job of overseeing Mary Shapiro over at SEC.

The good news is that your salary will be capped at $400k, the bad news is we might have to do what my good friend Governor Arnold out in Cali did--i.e. hold off weekly paychecks until the dust clears.

But, you'll have the use of a car and driver, which has been donated to the White House by Tom Daschle. Apparently, just three days before I arrived, auditors here determined that the US Government was actually bankrupt.

Making matters worse, Hank Paulson left here with the keys to not only the executive washroom, but also the keys to the US Mint. So, we're getting by on donations for the time being. Tim G. says he's getting a copy of the key to Mint made just as soon as his Ace Hardware credit card account gets cleared up. If Geithner can't get the problem resolved, I might be forced to bring in Bernie Madoff to raise some short term cash, but I'd need a new HR director to make that decision.

Yes, we've got some serious problems on the HR side of the equation. I need you to help address them. The good news is that morale here is high, its just that the people we've hired, or are trying to hire, are a bit light-headed when it comes to judgment skills.

It might be because the entire White House staff, including the Treasury team had tuned into that CNBC special last week about the marijuana industry...and I'm thinking some of it went to their head, literally. I'm hearing Rachel Maddow is starting to use phrases like "Foggy Heads living in Foggy Bottom " --and if she goes on air with that..well, it could be a national security issue.

And if O'Reilly over at FOX gets wind of this, I might have to reconsider the decision to close Guantanamo Bay and get him a room there.

I've included my blackberry contact info. Only four other people in the world have it. That should illustrate how important it is that I hear from you soon.

Short of getting you to join the team, my only other option is to invade Pakistan, which would serve as a good short-term distraction about what's going on here, but even with oil down at $43 a barrell, Hilary's Mobil card wouldn't cover more than one full tank of gas for the battleship we'd want to sail over there.

Your's truly,

President Barack H. Obama

Never Miss a Chance to Have Sex or Appear on Television

Courtesy of novelist, screenwriter, politician and modern day philosopher Gore Vidal....and for those that are questioning or pondering the strategies that are being proposed by your PR and IR wizards.

Or those that are scratching your heads about the most recent posting here..
:)

Marketing & Comm: Brandishing Your Brand

Rule 201 Brandishing Your Brand..

Every 'spinmeister' will have a different opinion when it comes to the best way to execute what's otherwise known as a 'stunt'.

You've created buzz, and along the way, you've created suspense around the buzz. You've got thousands of people on the edge of their seats. But, unlike a TV melodrama that plays once a week; your story is being broadcast 2x a day. So you need to have that much more horse power in the engine.

But the gas only lasts so long. So you go for the electric shock as a booster. That's fine. Its in every PR playbook.

Here's a tip: Don't do it unless you have a plan for the "post-electric shock" phase.

PR Positioning via Positive Messages

PR pundits pride themselves on being able to spin a client's value proposition.

The fact is, the best 'spin' isn't spin, its really about positioning a client that has a real value proposition.

Especially when targeting an 'institutional' audience; ones that are not only a bit cynical, but are actually pretty smart and contrary to what most PR spinners think, can actually read between the lines when it comes to IR and PR pieces. They get put off by crafty , "infotorials", and embrace articles that demonstrate objectivity--and most importantly, the underlying integrity of the topic of the piece.

We've actually received lots of kudos about a 'piece' prepared for a very solid client. Click on the title link and make your own decision!

Social Networking & Financial Services

Speaking of Institutional Investor; their flagship print publication, which comes out once every two months, allocated a page in the current edition to a topic that we've been espousing since we started blogging here a few years ago; using digital social networking applications as a means to enhance their respective brands, and connect more closely with their clients.

Here's the first two paragaphs of the article...
Financial services companies are getting personal. They are adopting the techniques of social networking — blogs, online forums and chatrooms more commonly associated with trendy virtual communities like Facebook and MySpace — to engage and communicate with their (generally younger) customers and come up with new product and marketing ideas.

An October report by Corporate Insight, a New York–based research firm that tracks financial industry services and strategies, indicates just how rapidly social networking has been spreading through the once-stodgy world of finance. In spring 2007 there were just a smattering of blogs and other interactive features, often lumped under the Web 2.0 rubic...now, 11 of 70 companies polled in the study have incorporated social media into their Internet platforms, and 70% operate "online communities serving self-directed investors or small-business owners.... ..Some firms have also started usings blogs and forums to serve clients and prospects alike.."

For those with half empty glasses, 1 out of 7 might not be a trend worth following. But when learning that Charles Schwab increased its Gen X client base by a whopping 32% as a result of feedback garnered via its online blog research, that makes the stodgy financial marketers wish they had cleaned off their glasses when this blogger was pounding the tables on the topic as recently as last year.

Yes..for a financial services firm, on-line applications that facilitate open communication between customers and between customer support staff presents a variety of compliance issues.

But one would think that a 32% increase in customer accounts might be worth throwing a dozen or two bodies at the opportunity. We'd be happy to lend a hand or some guidance to those financial service firms that think out of the box.

Dealing With The Press: Double Edge Sword & Dancing With Edward Scissorhands

For anyone that chooses, or is obligated to speak to media reporters, there's a common misconception when telling certain reporters that what you are saying is "off the record"and that it will actually be kept off the record.

Even when there's an exchange of email correspondences in which the reporter agrees to keep it off the record, and/or to not mention you as the source. Dancing with reporters is about as tricky as dancing with Edward Scissorshands. Instead of a two-step, it can become a double-cross.

Sure, you want to help get a 'story' out there, and you want your 'slant' to be incorporated--but you'd rather not have your name mentioned.

When you do that, don't forget that reporters are more determined to have their slant dominate the article. So, the odds are high that anything you say will be taken out of context. Sometimes the reporter does that intentionally; that's called muckracking. Sometimes the reporter does it because you have too much to say, and they decide which comments are most relevant or most poignant.

Most reporters honor the protocol of "off the record". Some get confused.

For example, NYT's Joe Nocera is finding himself in a bit of conundrum in his coverage of Steve Jobs, as evidenced in recent columns that he's written, including his mention of "off the record" comments that Jobs made with regard to his health. Dicey stuff. Both for Jobs, one of the most prominent CEO's in the world, and for Nocera.

Some reporters blatantly violate the code of honor regarding "off the record".

Case in point, a publication called Wall Street Letter. One of their reporters was 'tipped' via email about a story, and through great perseverance, the reporter actually identified the source, including phone #, and followed up to solicit a comment from the tipster.

In the telephone call with the source, and subsequent email exchanges, the reporter (Alexandra "Allie" Zendrian) acknowledged and agreed to keep the 'source' name out of the story. The next day, the publication ran a story that was not only completely out of context, but in addition to identifying the source's name and company, the reporter actually wrote, " when asked, [source] had no comment..."

What the source had actually said to the reporter was, "I won't comment on the record, and I won't engage in a conversation and share with you the tidbits if you publish my name.." The reporter agreed to the terms of engagement, and documented that agreement in a follow up email.

The most telling part of the story was when the tipster discovered the article online and sent an email to the reporter, as well as the senior editor and the publisher in an effort to extract a explanation for the 'outting'. Executives at Wall Street Letter had no comment..

In this case, it wasn't a "disaster" for the tipster, and some would say 'any news is good news' when you're trying to get a mention in the media. The particular publication is not widely read, and given the state of Wall Street, its fair to guess that their paid subscriber base and readership (securities industry traders and brokers) is down to a few hundred people. And few of their readers know, or actually care about the source being "outted".


PR/IR and Marcomm Rules to Remember:

Rule 1. Unless you have an existing relationship with a specific reporter, or have otherwise been given to understand they are generally honorable, be circumspect about what you say to them.

Rule 2. If executing a "guerrila"PR or IR tactic via emails to reporters as a means of stimulating interest in a story, but don't want to be identified as the 'tipster', don't use an email address that can be easily traced back to you.

For example, if you've previously published a document on the internet that incorporates your email address (a resume for example), your email address can be easily Googled, and in turn, your identity is easily unmasked. Even if you think you've removed the document from the internet. Once its up there, it stays up there.

That said, we know that even the very best Marcomm Gurus forget some of the basic rules of engagement. This 'case study' should help remind you not to forget.