In his new book, "Meatball Sundae: Is Your Marketing Out of Sync?" -- available on December 27th -- Seth Godin dissects the 14 trends marketers need to embrace to avoid eating meatball sundaes, which Godin explains as such: A meatball is a worthwhile commodity. They are things we need and sold to everyone....
Every now and then, you have to put down the spreadsheets and overrated business books in favor of something a little lighter especially on Fridays. Since it's just a day shy of December, we're obviously way overdue for a Christmas-related post. Just in the Saint nick of time, here's a little link love for...
Motorola's chief executive, Ed Zander, will hand over the reigns on January 1st, 2008. Zander's adamant it was his decision: "[It was] my date, my doing, my time frame." He even added that he'd told his wife he intended to be CEO for four years only. If you've followed Motorola's...
For a lot of consumers, it's going to be a lean holiday season. Which retailers will get the un-pinched pennies? Possibly the greenest. According to a Deloitte survey, one in five shoppers will be buying green this holiday season -- and they're willing to pay more to do so. ...
Last week, the Word of Mouth Marketing Association WOMMA held it's third annual summit in Las Vegas. Thanks to Mike Spataro of Visible Technologies for attending the three-day event, and recapping some of the highlights on his blog. If you're looking for some great word-of-mouth case studies, take...
You can do a lot of things with a 12-ounce Jimmy Dean sausage -- make mini sausage chimichangas, adhere to a diet with the reduced fat variety, or really tick off a 30-year customer. After learning that Jimmy Dean did away with the 16-ounce pack and increased pricing for the...
It's not easy to go up against an established brand, but in emerging markets, consumers are looking for more than just a well-known name; they're looking for the best bang for their buck (or yen or peso...). Young & Rubicam's BrandAsset Valuator survey looked at 10 emerging markets and identified their most...
According to ABC News, GodTube -- a Christian-focused user generated content site that is not, in fact, run by God -- is one of the fastest growing sites on the Internet right now. Chris Wyatt, founder and CEO, said the site attracts over 3 million unique visitors a month. Perhaps...
AdWeek ran a feature article, "How Consumers Help Build a Brand's DNA," that details how some companies use interactive marketing strategies to identify and then respond to customers' wants. Some examples include: BMW found during a cross-country promotional tour that Mini Cooper owners didn't like their car's cupholders and front-seat mechanisms. The company responded...
A recent Business Week article took a look at Apple's imprint in the teen market since Gen-Y fell in love with the iPod, presenting some interesting tidbits about Apple's appeal: CNW Marketing Research found that 70 percent of teens think an iPhone will impress...
There's an interesting post on MSNBC's Ads of the Weird blog today about Levi's 501 jeans and their latest commercial, made in two versions: one that brings a mystery woman to the man in 501s -- for straight audiences -- and one with a mystery man -- for gay audiences. The gay rendition...
Imagine this: your company's markets itself as a purveyor of healthy, simple meals. Your soups are low-sodium, you educate consumers about whole grains on your website, and you partner with the American Heart Association to help wipe out heart disease. You've also been selling luxury chocolates for 40 years, bringing...
According to Brand Week, Hewlett-Packard has upgraded its back-to-school campaign to broaden its scope of influence. Whereas last year HP's efforts focused on traditional media channels, this year 70 percent of the company's marketing dollars will finance online efforts, representing a shift in HP's target market from parents to teens,...
