Earlier this month, “The X Factor” became the first-ever reality-TV competition show to allow voting by Twitter. (See “How to Vote for Your Favorite Act on The X Factor” in the Twitter Help Center.) What’s that done for its social-TV footprint? Ad Age asked our editorial partner Bluefin Labs, a Cambridge-Mass.-based social-media analytics company that […]
Few people would argue with the notion that the most effective kind of marketing is word-of-mouth. Most of us would love to have all the world talking about our products or services, but how many of us know how to create that kind of buzz? Until recently, I thought that achieving the desirable but elusive […]
Since the early October release of a State Farm commercial featuring Green Bay Packers Quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, State Farm’s Buzz score—a measure of consumer perception—has increased among two groups: football fans and Wisconsin residents. In the ad, which promotes State Farm’s “Discount Double Check” program, Rodgers confronts a State Farm employee and several customers who […]
Have you met Siri yet? If not, it’s worth taking the time to learn more about the iPhone 4S’s digital ambassador, as she could represent the future direction of local search engine optimization. On the surface, Siri — the voice recognition app that allows iPhone users to control their cell phones verbally — seems like a cool party […]
How does a regional pizza chain compete with the mega marketing budgets of giants like Papa John’s, Pizza Hut and Domino’s? A willingness to try new strategies certainly helps. Case in point: Anthony’s Pizza & Pasta, a chain with 26 franchised locations in Denver and surrounding areas. Anthony’s has been relying heavily on out-of-home because […]
Online advertising seems poised to overtake newspapers as the top spot for local advertising within the next few years, according to Borrell Associates Local Online Advertising Forecast due out today. Online currently accounts for $15.7 billion of an $89.5 billion local advertising market — 17.5%, compared to newspaper’s 22.7% — according to Borrell. The research […]
By now you’ve surely seen those clever Allstate Insurance ads featuring a guy called Mayhem, ready to wreak havoc on the unprepared. The commercials have popularized the idea of mayhem, but it’s something I’ve seen for years in the area of marketing. When marketing is seen as an event rather than a system, mayhem ensues. […]
Pop quiz: What’s wrong with the following paragraph? Content optimization is important for search engine optimization. When you optimize your content, you make it easier for search engines to find it. Optimizing your content for search is the most important part of your content strategy. Answer: It’s boring. It sounds like it was written by a machine. […]
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) was founded in 1962 to ensure that “advertisements were welcomed and trusted by consumers” (source: ASA website). This definition, as the basis for the introduction of formal regulation within advertising, might surprise the cynical amongst us, who I’m sure would suggest that what the customer actually wants isn’t always at […]
In my last blog article I discussed stock photography and my love/hate relationship with it. Stock has it’s place, but if you need to communicate an idea with details that are specific to your company’s ad, catalog, brochure, etc., you need custom photography. The only way to get that perfect shot is with a professional […]
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