Yahoo is not a Search Company
May 28, 2009
According to Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz, “We’re not a search company.” You might ask, then what the heck is Yahoo? According to Bartz, it’s a site that creates a complete experience through social, mobile and video components.
The Yahoo! we know today is just the tip of the iceberg of where the company and brand are going in the future. The challenge will be repositioning the brand that has for so long been associated with search and as the brand tagging along behind Google, into a brand that delivers a more experiential and less transactional promise.
I’m rooting for Yahoo, and I think repositioning the brand could be what saves it. I give props to Carol Bartz for recognizing that the online market has changed and for trying to catch up. There is deep value in the Yahoo! brand, and watching it struggle in recent years has been unfortunate.
The repositioning of Yahoo! won’t succeed overnight. It’s going to take time, investment and patience. According to Bartz (and despite all the rumors and negative press to the contrary), the majority of Internet users still visit Yahoo! Perhaps the shift in brand perception among consumers doesn’t have to be a rough road. Only time will tell, but it sounds like Bartz is on the right track.
Watch the video interview with Bartz to hear her take on the future of Yahoo! firsthand.
What do you think? Can Yahoo! rebound?
Image: Flickr
Vatican Radio Gives Advertising Thumbs Up
May 27, 2009
In an effort to raise more money to keep the $30 million per year Vatican Radio alive, the Vatican will begin accepting advertising. An Italian electricity company was the first to sign on to place ads on Vatican Radio, but the doors are open for advertisers around the world to snatch a piece of the Catholic media pie.
Frankly, I think the Vatican has bigger problems to focus on than trying to keep Vatican Radio alive. Selling advertising isn’t going to fix the bigger problems they face. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure the spots will sell. But it’s a band-aid.
Take the poll below, and share your opinion on Vatican Radio advertising. Is it the cure-all that the Vatican seems to hope?
Image: Flickr
3 Steps to Organic Brand Positioning
May 23, 2009
Traditionally, brand positioning is defined as how customers perceive your brand or product in relation to similar products offered by your competitors in your market. Marketers usually try to create brand position through advertising and promotions in an attempt to influence customers’ perceptions of their brands. However, in today’s world of busy schedules and nonstop messages, companies need to find different ways to position their brand. By listening to your customers and making changes internally, you can build your brand position organically.
Organic brand positioning is a reactive strategy because it requires you to listen to your customers, but it’s also an effective strategy. To position your brand, you need to look at everything that affects your brand image and therefore, your customers’ perception of your brand. From customer service to pricing and advertising, every part of your organization has some effect on your customers’ overall perception of your brand, and that leads us to the 3 steps to organic brand position listed below: [Read more]
Cover of ‘Building Brand Value the Playboy Way Released’
May 21, 2009
The cover of my new book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, to be published by Palgrave Macmillan this fall, was finalized today. Here it is…
What do you think?
$2500 XBox Nikes
May 18, 2009
As the saying goes, imitation is the ultimate form of flattery. I suppose that saying can be applied to the “art of branding” — when an artist interprets a brand in his or her medium of choice. Think of the Campbell’s Soup can painting by Andy Warhol?
I arrived back from a great beach getaway this week to read this article on Yahoo! about the $2500 X-box and Nike shoes created by artist Sole Junkie out of California. With that kind of price tag, this certainly isn’t going to become a widely popular pair of sneakers (neither Microsoft nor Nike endorse it), but for art-loving XBox devotees, this might be the splurge they’ve been waiting for.
Regardless of the price, there certainly is value in both the XBox and Nike brands. Even Sole Junkie recognized that (check out his website, he has some interesting work).
The question on every brand manager’s mind should be this — how can I make my brand interesting enough for someone to create art from it and how can I create a loyal consumer following who would want to buy art with my brand on it? Maybe not sneakers, but some form of art. Take that to your boss when it’s time for performance reviews!
Image: SoleJunkie.com
Top 10 Direct Mail Mistakes
May 15, 2009
There are so many facets and nuances to creating an effective direct mail campaign. I thought I’d take a few minutes to provide a list of the top ten direct mail mistakes I frequently see in mailings I receive. Here we go…
1. Using a bad mailing list – Marketers should focus on quality not quantity when it comes to mailing lists. Work with your list provider or printer to scrub your list to ensure it’s targeted and clean. Run it through the National Change of Address (NCOA) and remove addresses that are not valid. With the high cost of postage these days, don’t mail pieces that won’t make it to a targeted recipient.
2. Not taking advantage of postage discounts – If you’re mailing in bulk, work with your printer or post office to ensure you’re getting the best per piece postage rate. Your file can be sorted to meet postal requirements for special discounts. As an alternative, your mail pieces can be delivered to bulk mail centers (BMCs) or other postal facilities rather than your local post office to help you take advantage of additional postage discounts. Explore your options and choose the postage discount plan that works best for your mailing. The U.S. Post Office website provides a lot of information about direct mail and postage discounts. [Read more]
Review of ‘Twitter Power’ by Joel Comm
May 12, 2009
Recently, I received a review copy of Twitter Power
Long story short, I liked Twitter Power and think it’s particularly useful for beginner Twitter users.
Aflac and Disney Pixar’s Commercial is Looking ‘Up’
May 10, 2009
Disney’s Pixar and Aflac have teamed up for a cross promotion effort that appears to be poised for success. You’ve got to love the Aflac duck, and the pairing of the duck with the animation of Disney Pixar’s new film, Up, works very well. Check it out below.
So often these types of pairings do not work at all. It’s great to see one that’s done so well! Your thoughts?
Online Advertising Tip – Make Sure Your Links Work
May 8, 2009
I saw a great ad on the home page of Yahoo! today for a promotion by Mars (check it out below). The ad told viewers to click on it to learn more about real chocolate and get a special coupon. I love chocolate, so I was more than happy to click on the link. Too bad it didn’t work — even after multiple tries.
Remember, if you run an ad on a popular website with an offer a lot of people are likely to be interested in, make sure that link is set up to always work. Get the bandwith you need to handle the traffic, make sure the page loads quickly, and so on. Do your homework first, so you don’t annoy your consumers later.
Geoff Rosenbaum of the Principle Group on Branding – Part 2
May 7, 2009
Time for part two from a series of posts from Geoff Rosenbaum. Geoff is the Executive Vice President of Principle Group, an international branding company headquartered in the United Kingdom that recently opened a new U.S. office in Tennessee. You can follow the link to read Part 1 of Geoff’s branding series.
Implementing a global brand can be a big, complex and terrifying endeavor. It’s not uncommon to be faced with hundreds of sites in several countries, all needing to be finished yesterday. You probably don’t speak the language in all these regions, and it’s doubtful you have brand champions established in every office in your worldwide organization.
But it’s your job to turn concepts into practical reality. As an example, take large-scale branding endeavors such as site signage and interiors. What must you do to ensure material quality and design are consistent, installed according to your standards, and quality-checked to assure your superiors the project has been correctly managed across all locations?
As promised in our last post, we’ll spend the next few weeks reviewing the five rules of brand implementation as developed by Principle Group through multiple, successful global programs. Rule number one is to Plan It Like a Military Campaign.
[Read more]
