Retirement as a Product Launch
Posted by goodmind on January 9th, 2008
President Bush is going to have to pull out all the stops in his “lame duck” video. Bill Gates has just upped the ante with a celeb infused last day on the job. Rather than resting on his laurels, the former Microsoft chairman is entering retirement amidst the level of goodwill and cheer mysteriously absent from recent product launches.
Though it’s already in pretty heavy circulation after debuting at CES on Monday, we figured we’d post the clip here as well. It’s already attained the status of legend within the blogosphere, and will probably be a drinking game by the end of the week.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lE21kpE3M0]
[Insert Predictable Song Lyric Here]
Posted by goodmind on December 7th, 2007
There’s no question customer satisfaction is a murky concept to define. This makes the task of providing satisfactory customer service pretty troublesome. Most companies are more notorious for the “lip service“ imparted in marketing materials, than any other sort of service provided. How can the significant gap between customer satisfaction and service be closed?
Well, where there’s Web 2.0 there’s a way. Satisfaction is a new socially minded service using the “people-powered,” or crowdsourced approach to demystifying what the customer considers service. Insight is obtained instantly via on-line forum, where company employees and consumer contributors can converse about important issues, at their convenience.
Many of our own research studies often end with participants expressing their gratitude that a corporate entitity not only acknowledges, but actually seeks their opinion. Engaging the customer through a question and answer dialogue, and providing an outlet in which to vent often comes off as a “customer service” in itself.
Thus it seems that lip service as customer service is OK, as long as the customer is the one doing the talking.
A Most Anticipated Release
Posted by goodmind on November 19th, 2007
Upon completing a recent project investigating the future of the press release, we concluded that it’s often better to show than to tell when releasing non-commercial information. Enter the Multimedia News Release; available through MultiVu.
After viewing this video explaining MultiVu’s Multi Media Press Release, we were struck by the skillful demonstration of taking one’s own advice.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEfs8NDC6V4]
Critically, the ”MNR on the MNR” demonstrates that you don’t need to be a Coppola in order to produce an entertaining, authentic and effective message. We project that the mutual benefits bestowed by this format for both producer and viewer signal happy tidings for the industry. Hopefully Hollywood will follow suit before we end up with Spiderman 4.
(Full disclosure: PR Newswire is a client)
Digg for Journalists?
Posted by goodmind on August 23rd, 2007
There has been a lot of virtual ink spilled of late, editorializing certain Facebook-happy journalists and other distinguished members of the mainstream media. Before someone hurts themselves jumping onto the Facebook bandwagon, journalists will have their very own social networking platform in a few weeks, just in time for the start of school.
The Beta version of Publish2 launches in September, and “aims to put journalists at the center of news on the web by creating a journalist-powered news aggregator.” Positioned as a more professional version of Digg, the Publish2 blog also maintains human driven aggregation is far superior to any existing search algorithm. And, by letting journalists in on the act, Publish2 will potentially represent a wider survey of interests than Digg’s perpetual top stories; Halo 3 rumors, and Sony PS3 satires.
It will certainly be interesting to see how this all plays out, and if the mainstream media can finally figure out how to use Web 2.0, now that it has pretty much been handed to them on a silver platter.
German Romanticism at its finest…
Posted by goodmind on July 9th, 2007
Winner of the Golden Lion at Cannes for best film advertisement, this video is perhaps gaining more international recognition by way of YouTube.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mTLO2F_ERY]
(via TechSnap)
Blue Tube
Posted by goodmind on February 20th, 2007
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r_PIg7EAUw]
After 6 days of delays and an incident in which passengers were left on a plane for 10 hours straight without moving Jet Blue has announced a "Bill of Rights." That’s somewhat expected. But what is perhaps more interesting is that the announcement was released on YouTube. (via Consumerist)
Microadvertising ≠ tiny ads
Posted by goodmind on July 27th, 2005
There was an interesting article in today’s Wall Street Journal (subscription required) about Interpublic Group’s move to prove its own value:
Interpublic Group, the advertising holding company, is forming a new unit devoted to helping advertisers figure out just what their marketing dollars do. Known as the Marketing Accountability Partnership, the unit will be run by Neil Canter, a former Accenture partner. He will report to Stephen Gatfield, Interpublic’s executive vice president of global operations and innovation, and Interpublic Chairman and Chief Executive Michael Roth….
Among advertisers, pressure is mounting to find data demonstrating that advertising helps increase market share, improves sales and heightens brand awareness. With direct marketing and Internet-based advertising proving relatively trackable, marketers want proof that other sorts of promotions work, too, says Arthur Anderson of Morgan Anderson Consulting, a New York firm that works with advertisers.
We believe that microadvertising is not only on the rise, but that it’s often more effective than traditional advertising, particularly for high-value and infrequently used products and services. This goes double for market research — on which we will blog much more in the coming days and weeks.
In the meantime, if you haven’t already familiarized yourself with Overture and Google AdWords, we would recommend doing so immediately.
Blogging Hazzard
Posted by goodmind on June 1st, 2005
A guy named Chris in Manhattan just landed a gig as the “Vice-President” and full-time blogger of the “Dukes of Hazzard Institute.” It pays $100,000 per year. Sublime or ridiculous? Probably the latter, but it’s great PR.
Some viruses are good…
Posted by goodmind on March 22nd, 2005
… such as those that come in the form of a marketing campaign. Viral marketing is all the rage right now, it seems. At Goodmind, we’ve been talking about the value of word-of-mouth marketing for years.
First “nation-building,” now “nation-branding”…
Posted by goodmind on March 18th, 2005
Can branding techniques shape America’s image overseas? According to the Boston Globe, the State Department thinks so. And the UK also seems to be interested in controlling how it’s perceived around the globe. (Illustration / John Ueland)
