ANA Marketing Maestros

YouBama and the Next Wave of Political Advertising

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

Pondering Podvertising?

By: Irina Skaya

My daily 50-minute commute to work from Brooklyn to Grand Central station usually consists of reading the Daily News or more recently, listening to news podcasts on my iPod.  It is especially entertaining during the times the conductor holds up the train because of “the red signal ahead of us.” It makes time tick faster and feels like we’re moving sooner than we actually are. 

What moves me most about Podcasting is the convenience of portal media that allows me to download my favorite shows to my iPod and time-shift my listening to when it is best suitable for me, like on my way to work.  Today, consumers of Podcasting demand better content and a better personalized experience when they want. The shift in control from marketers to consumers are altering the way we approach marketing.

Podvertising is great tool for forward-thinking advertisers who want to try their hands at alternative media.  Podvertising allows marketers to target their niche audience and prevent ad avoidance at a small cost. Users are unlikely to fast-forward through your ad because they've already subscribed to the podcast and usually, do not mind listening to a 15-second ad. Also, with podcasting, small companies who could not afford to advertise on the big screen have the opportunity to reach their target audience.

How do you start advertising on Podcasts?

1. Sponsorships: sponsor a couple of target podcasts. For example: Gatorade sponsors Endurance Radio.
2. Offer giveaways and promotions: offer discounts and prizes in order to entice the listeners and prevent ad avoiders.
3. RSS feeds: You can time your podcast to be on your site at the same time as a new product launch. When people search for your info on your new product, your podcast will be in those results. If a user likes what he hears, he may decide to not only listen, but subscribe as well.
4. Produce Your Own: create your own podcast, featuring an audio informercial, video demo for new products, audio/video press releases about your product, etc.  Consumer-packaged-goods companies may use podcasts to enhance consumers’ lives and to build a connection with them. For instance, IBM produces podcasts on key business and technology topics. 

There is a great video on Podvertising that I couldn't insert here, but can direct you to. 

Don't underestimate the power of Podvertising! According to eMarketer, podcasting advertising will increase by 400% by 2011.

Nerds Really Do Have More Fun!

By Kaitlin Villanova

Now that Mr. Gates is officially (well, partially) retired, he is loosening up the austere image of Microsoft Corporation by personally indulging in the "consumer generated content" fad of 2007. In this You Tube video unveiled at CES Technology event earlier this week; Gates is willfully playing-on his geeky persona that Apple has burned into consumer’s minds with the MAC vs. PC spots.

In this video, familiar faces from Microsoft reaffirm Gates’ dedication to the company in short camera interviews reminiscent of NBC's hit show The Office. Celebrities and politicians like Matthew McConaughey, Jay-Z, Al Gore, John Stewart, Hilary Clinton, Bono, George Clooney and Barack Obama are featured in the video to play on the idea that this computer genius....is just a big nerd!

This video proves to society that geeks really do have more fun, errr... ahh.... or was that blondes?

Why don't you see for yourself:

Technorati tags: YouTube Consumer Generated Content

Search Engine Friendly URLs

By: Irina Skaya

In today’s digital age, the Internet plays a crucial role in the consumers’ lives and changes the way companies advertise.  Every day millions of people use the Internet for research, purchasing products, acquiring information relevant to our hobbies, interests, connecting with family and friends, etc. Based on the number of Internet users, Internet advertising can be used as a valuable tool to improve the growth and profitability of companies.

To increase traffic to the company Websites, it is important to present successful and memorable URLs in ads.  Here is a cool blog that distinguishes good URLs from bad ones. 

Best Practices for Creating Search Engine Friendly URLs:

- DON’TUSEALLCAPSTANGLEDUPTOGETHER.COM
- No hypens/or slashes
- Use words instead of numbers
- Use YourSlogan.com when running an integrated campaign
- Brevity is virtue
- If .com or .net is unavailable, find a new brand name
- No need to include www to indicate that it's a URL

Facebook: Advertisers Are Your Friends

By: Irina Skaya

Earlier this month, Facebook  launched its new ad system that allows advertisers to track users’ activities on the Website to deliver product referrals and target advertising.

With a recurring theme of behavioral targeting at last month’s ANA Annual Conference and industry headlines that consumers must be part of the brand, Facebook is up to something.   

Embracing a most powerful form of advertising, word-of-mouth-marketing, the idea is that consumers are more likely to trust a recommendation from their friends rather than from a 30-second TV spot. The only question I beg to ask is, “Why would anyone publicly disclose their shopping habits, unless they were getting paid for it?” Facebook might have to throw serious discounts or perks to win participation. 

Facebook’s new ad system has also raised some privacy concerns. Although Facebook does not ask users for permission in way that lets them know that they might appear in an ad, it will not share any personal information with the advertisers. And it is a personal choice for users to sign on as fans of a company.

The new ad system presents a major opportunity to tap the high disposable income student demographic currently using Facebook. You can create relevant ads according to users’ interests, relationship status, education status, etc. For instance, if you are a recruiter looking to fill a position and want to hire people from specific companies, you can target people based on what company they are employed by. If you are an advertiser promoting wedding consultancy business, you might want to target those who have, "Engaged” under their relationship status. 

When it comes to online, the power clearly lies in the hands of the consumer – from growth in user-generated content to Facebook’s new ad system, we are witnessing a transformation in the nature of advertising.

"I saw it on the radio"

By Irina Skaya

Since streaming radio and MP3 file trading emerged as the new medium champions, advertisers became less hopeful about the future of radio. “Radio is the Cinderella medium,” said David Ogilvy, comparing radio to the poor stepdaughter of media.  

Unlike its stepsisters, radio continues to be a unique medium because:

1. It has a greater and a more immediate impact on its listeners because all of the attention is devoted to one sense: sound.

2. It fosters imagination and produces active and intellectual listeners.

3. It offers the opportunity to be with the consumer at the right time to cue behavior and purchase - flexibility which TV and print may not offer.

While television is a powerful medium, it gives consumers the freedom to turn their heads away and to close their eyes. According to Erwin Ephron who presented at our last Integrated Marketing Committee meeting, TV Reach requires at least two exposures, which may be unaffordable. Radio is more cost-effective than TV in delivering that second exposure that is required to reach light-viewers missed by television ads. Thus, TV/Radio schedule will easily out-perform TV alone in reaching consumers.

Some of today’s most successful radio stations use digital components and drive their listeners to the web for additional information, such as photographs, videos, and blogs in order to incorporate saliency. With the great amount of radio stations streaming their programming via the Internet and satellite radio, radio is enjoying a true resurgence.

Radio advertisers need to recognize new technologies, such as digital HD or online streaming as future growth opportunities. But the industry must be able to work together as a group to affect that change, and do it in an expeditious manner. Radio advertisers must embrace entrepreneurship, collaboration, and communication in order to revolutionize the industry. By wearing the right pair of glass slippers, radio like Cinderella can sparkle in its own light.

Watching for the Commercials

by Mark Fogelberg

For everyone who looks forward to the Superbowl for the commercials, a little bit of salvation has arrived.

Firebrand, a TV, web and mobile platform promises to deliver full screen live video and full web functionality for advertising content. Yes, it's a commercials only "multichannel" of content delivering over 5,000 spots.

This could prove a quite amazing tool for marketers. One gets a captive audience that has actively sought out a marketing message. The marketer is then given the opportunity to engage and reward this viewer. The demo shows a Levi's ad which links to a promotion which the viewer can enter while still watching the chosen spot. (Quite cool tech.)

With nearly every session at our Annual Conference touching upon digital's role at the marketing table; with the needs for ROI measures of marketing activity; with the permeation of marketing and brands on daily lives of individuals, here's an idea whose time has come.

Tune in on your TV/browser/mobile.

The UPS Whiteboard Guy

Last Thursday brought us to the ANA B-to-B Conference in Chicago. B-to-B marketers converged for a day of sharing & learning.

What's interesting about B-to-B marketing versus B-to-C is the high degree of specialization that many of these marketers contend with each day. Working with more limited resources, B-to-B marketers step into integrated marketing programs readily and eagerly - often to stretch their limited budgets.

Other times, a B-to-B campaign must have a big enough idea to support B-to-C components as well. That's where our friend drawing on the whiteboard comes in.

The now famous Whiteboard Guy happens to be the same gent that helped create & shape the ads. Andy Azula serves as SVP/Creative Director at The Martin Agency for his day job. Overtime starts when he picks up the wonderful smelling pen.

Whiteboard offered just what UPS needed to take its "Brown" brand to a new level. Plus, the pure simplicity of the concept lends itself to deep integration. Whiteboard.UPS.com showcases much of the effort so far - 17 commercials, deep interactivity, user interaction, and some seriously good salesmanship.

I dare any business person (or anyone who's ever wondered what's behind those brown trucks) to attempt a quick visit to the site. You can't because the content compels; the execution delights. You'll be pulled into the site to learn tons of great info painlessly and entertainingly. Talk about a great B-to-B marketing success story. Congrats to the client & the agency

Summer Friday Tea Partay

It was bound to happen.

After standing atop the preppie heap for nearly a year, P-Unit and his Cape Cod Crew have had their ode to Smirnoff Tea attacked by West Coast haters.

Boyz N The Hillz debuted a video immediately attacking East Coast cred and spilling over into a West Coast diatribe. The fact that both videos are allowed to co-exist on the Smirnoff Tea official site should only add fuel to the fire.

Marketers embracing consumer generated content must be vigilant against times when said content crosses the line. What will happen when this battle of rhymes escalates into all out war? Here's hoping that Smirnoff parent Diageo steps in to broker some sort of accord. The prepster community must find ways to heal, to mend fences.

(With tongue planted firmly in cheek, I am out.)

Suggestive Searching

By Kaitlin Villanova

I was recently searching the web when I stumbled upon StumbleUpon.com. This open-source web-browser plug-in allows for you to channel surf the web. When downloading this feature you are prompted to select interests/topics  (examples: humor, writing, cooking, macs, fashion and tennis) and then from there the tool finds web pages based on the topics that you chose. There are millions of sites in the database, all submitted and recommended by other "stumblers."

The rating system is a similar model to the Pandora music site, where you type in an artist and it finds similar music that you can then rate on a the thumbs up or thumbs down system. This collaborative filtering of sites like Stumble and Pandora, use a automated process combining human opinions with machine learning of personal preference (pretty fascinating stuff!).

The Stumbleupon toolbar looks like this:

As you can see, the tool bar contains the Stumble! icon which send you to the next page of interest, the thumbs up thumbs down option, if you do rate a site thumbs up it is stored in the "Favorites" tab. You can easily pass the sites onto friends or colleagues with the "Send to" option. There is also a news, video, photo and even a wikipedia tab.

This recommendation system uses peer and social networking principals and includes a blogging feature. It's an easy way to keep up with the news and technology and find some pretty interesting sites. Here are a few of my favorites that I've stumbled upon lately..... (sorry for the pun I couldn't resist!)

When Cloning Goes Wrong

Open Source Mac 

Cook by Numbers

Fashion Police

p> Technorati tags: StumbleUpon Open Source Pandora