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Opposites Do Attract: Google and P&G Partner for Innovation

January 29, 2009

Excerpted from WSJ, ” A New Odd Couple: Google, P&G Swap Workers to Spur Innovation” By Ellen Byron, November 19, 2008

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At P&G the culture is so rigid, employees jokingly call themselves “Proctoids.”

In contrast, Google staffers are urged to wander the halls on scooters and brainstorm on public whiteboards.

Now, this odd couple thinks they have something to gain from one another — so they’ve started swapping employees … staffers have spent weeks dipping into each other’s training programs and sitting in on meetings … Closer ties are crucial to both sides.

P&G, the biggest advertising spender in the world, is waking up to the reality that the next generation of buyers now spends more time online than watching TV. Google craves a bigger slice of P&G’s $8.7 billion annual ad pie as its own revenue growth slows.

The struggle by these two heavyweights to formulate successful strategies highlights how tough it is for myriad other companies, from newspapers to auto makers, to profit from Americans’ rush online …

P&G has a long history as a marketing innovator … But amid the shift to online media, P&G has stayed mostly on the sidelines so far … Tide is P&G’s single biggest brand in North America … It was also one of the first products to advertise on live television … Still, despite the shift among younger consumers toward online media, it is clear P&G’s marketing approach still prioritizes TV…

A big hurdle for Google is that many big ad agencies … still don’t make online strategies a priority. “The worst answer you can hear from an agency is, ‘Don’t worry, we have a group to handle interactive’ … Interactive isn’t a group, it’s everybody’s job”…

Consumer-products companies have been among the slowest to adopt online marketing because the traditional forms of marketing … are still reasonably effective …

A recurring suspicion: It works only for products that people buy online…”Everyone has a mindset that it has to be transactional … But, Online campaigns,  can powerfully influence brand awareness among consumers.”

Edit by SAC

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While the corporate cultures of Google and P&G couldn’t be more dissimilar, the partnership is a merger of two of the best and promises interesting results.  It appears that P&G has been satisfied with and encouraged by the success of the first online campaigns to come out of the partnership.  If this relationship continues P&G is nearly guaranteed to increase its online spending and Google will be there to reap a portion of the benefits. 

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Full Article:
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB122705787917439625-lMyQjAxMDI4MjE3OTAxNTk3Wj.html

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Posted in Internet Marketing - eCommerce -, Mktg - Advertising, Mktg - Product & Innovation | Leave a Comment »

Online ads … customized on the fly

January 16, 2009

Excerpted from the New York Times, “Web Marketing That Hopes to Learn What Attracts a Click”, by Stephanie Clifford, December 3, 2008

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Online advertisers are not lacking in choices: They can display their ads in any color, on any site, with any message, to any audience, with any image.

Now, a new breed of companies is trying to tackle all of those options and determine what ad works for a specific audience. They are creating hundreds of versions of clients’ online ads, changing elements like color, type font, message, and image to see what combination draws clicks on a particular site or from a specific audience.

It is technology that could cause a shift in the advertising world. The creators and designers of ads have long believed that a clever idea or emotional resonance drives an ad’s success. But that argument may be difficult to make when analysis suggests that it is not an ad’s brilliant tagline but its pale-yellow background and sans serif font that attracts customers.

Adisn, based in Long Beach, and Tumri, based in Mountain View, are working both sides of the ad equation. On one, they are trying to figure out who is looking at a page by using a mix of behavioral targeting and content analysis. On the other side, they are assembling an ad on the fly that is meant to appeal to that person.

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Adisn’s approach has been to build a database of related words so it can assess the content of a Web site or blog based on the words on its pages.

Adisn then buys space on Web sites, and uses its information to find an appropriate ad to show visitors to those sites. If a visitor views pages about beaches, weather and Hawaii, it might suggest that the visitor is interested in Hawaiian travel.

Based on that analysis, Adisn’s system pulls different components — actors, fonts, background images — to make an ad. For example, it might show an ad with a blue background, an image of a beach, and a text about tickets to Hawaii.

Simple Green, the cleaning brand, began working with Adisn this year to advertise a new line of products called Simple Green Naturals.

“If it’s a woman looking at a kitchen with a stainless steel refrigerator, they can show a stainless steel product.”

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Tumri’s approach is slightly different. It creates a template for ads, including slots for the message, the color, the image and other elements.

Unlike Adisn, it does not buy ad space, but lets clients choose and buy space on sites themselves. And rather than building a contextual database, Tumri uses whatever targeting approach advertisers are already using, whether it is behavioral or contextual or demographic, and assembles an ad on the fly based on that information.

“It’s reporting back to the advertiser and agency saying, ‘Guess what? The soccer mom in Indiana likes background three, which was pink, likes image four, which was the S.U.V., and likes marketing message 12, about room, safety and comfort.”

Edit by DAF

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Full article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/business/media/03adco.html?_r=1&ref=media&pagewanted=print

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Posted in Internet Marketing - eCommerce -, Mktg - Advertising, Mktg - Internet, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Selling power, speed, and sex … (to utilitarians)

January 13, 2009

Excerpted from Marketing Daily, “Mintel To Mad Ave: Can The Sexy Car Ads” by Karl Greenberg, December 4, 2008

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Most consumers don’t see their cars as a chariot of the gods, a freedom machine, a wheeled camel for Lawrence of Arabia, an automatic chick/hunk magnet, or portable fountain of youth. Instead, they view their vehicles simply as functional and safe for getting around…

Mintel says its survey of car owners suggests that what most people actually feel behind the wheel, regardless of the name on the sheet metal is: responsible and practical, not sexy or powerful…Mintel asked consumers: “How do you feel when you are driving?” Three of the top four feelings chosen by respondents had to do with utility and security, per the firm, with 46% saying they felt “responsible”; 40% saying “safe”; and 37% saying they felt “practical.”

The more amorphous sentiments started further down, with 39% saying “happy” was the thing they felt behind the wheel…near the bottom of the list landed “powerful,” “fast,” and “sexy.” The bottom of the list was “rich”…60% believe the main purpose of a vehicle is to get from point A to point B…

“We found that for most people, driving a car or truck does not make them feel sexy, fast or powerful…The problem is that the auto industry is built on selling power, speed and sex. Those images are dynamic, but they don’t necessarily resonate with the majority of utilitarian, safety-focused drivers.”

Mintel also found that the top information sources that people use when researching new vehicles are word-of-mouth, car dealer brochures, consumer buying guides and the Internet.

Edit by SAC

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If car ads are meant to convey the “behind the wheel feeling,” they are missing the mark according to Mintel’s new study.  Most ads feature fast, sexy cars gliding around winding roads rather than practical, responsible drivers running daily errands safely.  However it is not clear from this study whether the “feeling behind the wheel” is motivating purchase.  While a driver may seek to feel safe and responsible behind the wheel ,the same driver may want the exterior of the car to scream fast, sexy and powerful.

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Full Article:
http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=96019

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Posted in Autos - Travel, Mktg - Advertising, Mktg - Positioning | Leave a Comment »

'Play Ball' ? Obama – treading on the American pastime – says 'not so fast' …

October 17, 2008

Excerpted from THR.com “Fox to Change World Series Start Time for Obama”, Paul J. Gough, Oct 15, 2008

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To accommodate a half-hour Obama political advertisement on Fox on Oct. 29, Major League Baseball has agreed to move the start time of World Series Game 6 by about 15 minutes. That would move the start of the game from 8:20 p.m. ET or so to 8:35 p.m.

“Fox will accommodate Senator Obama’s desire … If requested, the network would be willing to make similar time available to Senator McCain’s campaign.”

The blessing from MLB clears the way for Fox to air the promo and collect upward of $1 million in ad revenue for the half hour, more than what either CBS or NBC was charging.

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Full article:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3ifa25645bfd6bcf91b52ef4f665b661f5 

Thanks to SMH for spotting the story

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Ken’s Take:

(1) If I were McCain, I’d take Fox up on the offer and buy 30 minutes or so before game 7 … good buzz even if the series doesn’t go the full 7 games

(2) When at B&D, we’d buy “end of reel” time during the World Series.  It’s kinda like flying standby. Networks sell extra commercial spots (cheap) just in case a game has many pitching changes or goes into extra innings.  One year, we hit lotto — game 7 went extra innings and we got several exposures.  Mc Cain should do that, too.

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Posted in Government & Politics, Mktg - Advertising, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »

‘Play Ball’ ? Obama – treading on the American pastime – says ‘not so fast’ …

October 17, 2008

Excerpted from THR.com “Fox to Change World Series Start Time for Obama”, Paul J. Gough, Oct 15, 2008

* * * * *

To accommodate a half-hour Obama political advertisement on Fox on Oct. 29, Major League Baseball has agreed to move the start time of World Series Game 6 by about 15 minutes. That would move the start of the game from 8:20 p.m. ET or so to 8:35 p.m.

“Fox will accommodate Senator Obama’s desire … If requested, the network would be willing to make similar time available to Senator McCain’s campaign.”

The blessing from MLB clears the way for Fox to air the promo and collect upward of $1 million in ad revenue for the half hour, more than what either CBS or NBC was charging.

* * * * *

Full article:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3ifa25645bfd6bcf91b52ef4f665b661f5 

Thanks to SMH for spotting the story

* * * * *
Ken’s Take:

(1) If I were McCain, I’d take Fox up on the offer and buy 30 minutes or so before game 7 … good buzz even if the series doesn’t go the full 7 games

(2) When at B&D, we’d buy “end of reel” time during the World Series.  It’s kinda like flying standby. Networks sell extra commercial spots (cheap) just in case a game has many pitching changes or goes into extra innings.  One year, we hit lotto — game 7 went extra innings and we got several exposures.  Mc Cain should do that, too.

* * * * *

Want more from the Homa Files?
Click link =>  The Homa Files Blog

Posted in Government & Politics, Mktg - Advertising, Sports & Athletics | Leave a Comment »

Tough Ads for Tough Times, Marketers Use More Comparison Ads

October 17, 2008

Excerpted from The Wall Street Journal “And in This Corner…Marketers Take Some Jabs” by Suzanne Vranica, October 2, 2008

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As the economy gets ugly, marketers are getting nasty too.

From soup companies to pizza chains, marketers are stepping up their so-called attack ads, calling out rivals by name, comparing products and poking fun at competitors.

An example: This week, Domino’s Pizza is giving away oven-baked sandwiches to the first 1,000 customers named Jared — a reference to Jared Fogle, the well-known pitchman for Subway Restaurants…

Just how acrimonious is it getting out there? The National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, which acts as the ad police, is fielding many more complaints from marketers who believe they are the victim of misleading comparison ads…in August alone, the NAD had 15 advertisers challenge competitive ads that rivals had begun using — compared with six challenges in August 2007. September also saw complaints jump about 50% from last year…

“In a downturn, people are being more and more careful on how they are spending their money, and more than usual you have to make sure you are breaking through and giving them a reason to buy you,” says Patrick Doyle, president of Domino’s USA.

Several weeks ago, Campbell Soup kicked off a big ad effort, created by BBDO, that took on rival General Mills’ Progresso. One print ad shows a can of Progresso with the caption, “Made With MSG,” while a headline above an adjacent picture of a can of Campbell’s Select Harvest reads: “Made With TLC.” The two brands have taken shots at each other in the past, but this is the most aggressive Campbell Soup has gotten…

Meanwhile, Burger King has deployed a steady string of ad attacks against its archrival McDonald’s and other competitors this year. One billboard ad featured a Whopper sandwich not fitting into a Big Mac box with a headline that reads: “SILLY WHOPPER, THAT’S A BIG MAC BOX”…

Comparison ads have been around since the 1970s, when the major television networks lifted a ban on the practice after the FTC publicly began to encourage it. Since then, they have been used to sell everything from antacids to paper towels. The technique is most closely associated with the cola wars between Coke and Pepsi…

With the current financial crisis looking like it is far from over, consumers can expect plenty more attack ads…

Attack ads, when they get too intense, can confuse consumers…The key is some subtlety in the delivery, marketers say. It is “inappropriate to get overly aggressive,” says Colin Watts, vice president and general manager of Campbell’s U.S. Soups…Despite the risks, many marketers say they have scored points with hard-edged ads.

…Campbell Soup’s taste-test commercial was the fifth-most-liked television ad that ran from Aug. 18 to Sept. 14, according to IAG, a Nielsen Co.-owned market-research firm that uses an online panel to measure ad performance.

Edit by SAC

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Full article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122289868915095901.html

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Posted in Mktg - Advertising | Leave a Comment »

Kellogg : Online Marketing ROI Beats Broadcast

September 15, 2008

Excerpted from Advertising Age, “Kellogg: Digital ROI Surpasses That of TV” Sep 4, 2008

The digital divide is narrowing for Kellogg Co..its return on online investment for the Special K brand has surpassed that of broadcast TV over the past 18 months.

Kellogg crossed the $1 billion benchmark on ad spending during 2007, and its outlay is set to increase this year.

“It’s still relatively early in our learning,” Mark Baynes, CMO…said,…”But analysis of the Special K initiative of the last 18 months showed digital media exceeding that of broadcast ROI.”

The marketer described the company’s findings as “obviously very encouraging,” and predicted they would help “drive stronger adoption across the business…For the right opportunity, the [online] space offers fresh ways to commercialize new and existing brands, target specific audiences on needs more cost effectively…”

Edit by SAC

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While measuring success of online advertising continues to evolve, Kellogg isn’t the only company looking for higher returns online.  AdAge announced earlier this year that GM plans to move half of its ad spending online and a recent report by eMarketer notes that online advertising’s share of total media will double from 2006 to 2011, reaching $42 billion by 2011.

Chart Source:
http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/online-ad-spending-to-reach-42b-by-2011-budget-shift-to-accelerate-2292/emarketer-us-online-advertising-spending-2006-2011jpg/

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Full article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122057760688302147.html?mod=2_1567_topbox

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