By Cara Brooke Schultz
Originally the creator of
the Facebook group established the group as a means of protest. She was quoted in the CNN.com article as saying, “This is something I have felt strongly about for a long time: bullying
by certain Muslim groups will not be tolerated in a free country.”
By: Irina Skaya
In light of President’s Week, I want post about the 2008 primary state of affairs as Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton slug it out for the presidential nomination. There are several things that interest me about this particular election, and it’s not the potential win of the first woman president nor the first black president. After all, we already had a black man and a white woman on the presidential ticket - Jesse Jackson in 1984 and 1988, and Geraldine Ferraro in 1984. What is is unique about this election is the viral online marketing campaign Obama has created. According to Time Magazine, no other campaign has tapped into social networks so aggressively, nor used the Internet to leverage the financial power of small donors.
Earlier this month, Obama scored highest among Democratic voters, ages 18-30 in the New York primaries. Why is Obama so popular among young voters? Is it because today’s generation of voters is colorblind or is it the emotional connection that Obama has created with them through social networking communities?
In one of his recent speeches, Obama stated that he wants to get people excited about politics again. I think he will achieve that--Obama is finding innovative ways to create a personal connection with potential voters, and to raise campaign dollars, using online social networks such as Facebook and MySpace. On Facebook, Obama has five times the number of Clinton supporters. Obama’s nearly 5-minute video response to President Bush’s “State of the Union” address became the most viewed video in the world. His own Website also features a community where potential voters may organize their friends, neighbors and networks. Members can build their own profile, form affinity groups, host events, write blogs, and, of course, donate money to his campaign. Obama even has his own user-generated channel called YouBama that features Obama supporters spreading the word on why he should be the 44th president.
Check out this powerful video, "Yes, we can" released by Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am, featuring a wildly diverse cross section of celebrity supporters:
Google trends show that in the last couple of months, the search volume for “Barack Obama” has exceeded the search volume for “Hillary Clinton.”
His online campaign has not only earned Obama $5 million more in donor dollars than Clinton’s fundraising efforts, but also allows him to gauge the pulse of his audience and know where to steer his campaign. So, who will win the democratic nomination? The candidate with a recognized brand name and relevant experience or the fresh face candidate who has superseded traditional advertising with buzz marketing, and as a result, leads the primary fund raising race?
Technorati tags: viral marketing 2008 presidential election Barack Obama Hillary Clinton social networks
By Kaitlin Villanova 
Do you hear the buzz? It's called Alibaba, no, not the fictional character from Arabian Nights but China's largest e-commerce company.
Alibaba is "the world's largest marketplace for global trade and the leading provider of online marketing services for importers and exporters. It is the place for buyers and sellers to find trade opportunities and promote their businesses online. Alibaba is not a trading company but rather an online business platform, where you can search or post information to find potential business partners."
It has been noted to be the first company to give Google a scare and maybe even a run for its money. Founded by former English teacher Jack Ma in 1995, Alibaba is selling a 17% stake in the company, in the biggest technology IPO since Google.
Some facts:
So what does this mean for marketers? With so many involved in the B2B space this allows for virtual global trade. Scott Tong of American Public Media’s Marketplace refers to Alibaba “as the online dating service for global business.”
With close to 25 million members, with sales and marketing offices in over 30 countries, and more than 4,400 employees, it leaves a big platform from which to do business. If your organization is doing B2B globally, I recommend you take the time to evaluate this search engine.
Technorati tags: Alibaba B2B Global Search Engine
B
y Will Waugh
I don't normally rely on the New York Post for much more than Page Six, but they
are announcing Microsoft is talking to Yahoo! about a potential $50 billion bid (thanks Forbes.com) Funny, I was just meeting with Microsoft on Monday and Tuesday and they didn't mention a lick of this to me (I feel slighted). The pressure, the Post says, is coming from Google's continued domination of search and online advertising, particularly with the recent purchase of DoubleClick.
If it is true, why not for Microsoft? I don't see this as a sign of desperation, rather a desire to expand it's capabilities online.
What this would give Microsoft:
That's just a start. Looking forward to seeing how this develops.
By Barbara Bacci Mirque
During a winter trip to the lovely Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort in British Columbia, Canada, I learned 
firsthand about the dark side of one to one marketing. No, not the digital type this term invokes but the good old fashioned one on one, personal sale that built companies such as Fuller Brush and Avon.
My experience was with a vacation timeshare and the outcome was not pleasant, but now that company is going to learn about the power of the conversation and how in the digital communication world we inhabit, the customer has a voice – a loud voice. I can express my displeasure with this company not to a few friends but to many hundred through blogs, social network sites, etc.
So what happened to incur this wrath? As my husband and I sat warming up in one of the ski lodges, we were scoped out by a marketing person since we fit their demographic (stable looking couple, in the age bracket of those who might be induced to purchase a timeshare at this fabulous resort – how is that for traditional targeting?!). When the pleasant young man started chatting us up, whereas this hardened New Yorker would have ignored him back home, we began conversing and were ultimately invited to a vacation timeshare presentation. Since we had never participated in one before we accepted (and the offer of 2 free lift tickets was enticing!) Little did we know what we were getting into when we later arrived at the sales office– the hard sell began. Ultimately our twenty-something salesman - a former self-acclaimed champion snowboarder - became very offended when we steadfastly refused his incredible price incentive. He ended the session by loudly insulting us and berating us for attending "just for the free gift" (Well of course – but they offered!)
So what are the lessons here?
Don’t let this happen to your company and if it does for legitimate reasons, react to it and correct it at the source.
Technorati tags: timeshares marketing blogs
By Barbara Bacci Mirque
I am fortunate enough to meet the top marketers in the world through my 
employment at the ANA. Every day is an incredible learning experience for me as I interact with these marketing mavens. But I don’t just learn about marketing from them – I learn about leadership. One of the marketers with whom I have interacted at the ANA was just inducted into the AAF Advertising Hall of Fame. Bob Wehling, former Global Marketing Officer at The Procter & Gamble Company, accomplished many things in his 41 years at P&G but counts among his most cherished accomplishments marrying Carolyn and being the father of six daughters - and now the grandfather of 23. There he learned true insights about marketing to women, he said at his induction ceremony on March 20. He is also very proud of his community service work, particularly in the area of education and children’s issues.
One of the most compelling things I have heard about Bob from folks who were lucky enough to work with him or for him, is how he started every meeting with the question - "What can I do for you today?" Here is a person at the top of his game, commanding hundreds of millions of dollars in marketing spend, who was seeking to help those with whom he came in contact. That is the leadership lesson we can all take back from Bob Wehling. Similarly, what struck me as I listened to the biographies of each inductee was how they all seemed to have a similar style to Bob and were more concerned about others than themselves and their own career trajectory. So that is a key success attribute we can all start employing in our interactions with our staffs and marketing partners. I can’t wait for the folks who work for me to fall off of their chairs when I start a meeting with that line! You can read their inspirational stories and learn more about Bob and the other Hall of Fame inductees at this marvelous website.
Technorati tags: wehling marketing procter & gamble
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