Opportunity Knocking

Earbuds and Record Players, Not Six Disc Changers: Music and Consumers in the Digital Age

What is it about vinyl records that continue to captivate me?  Is it that grainy yet "authentic" sound?  Is it the memories attached to that record player?  Is it the colorful album covers that remind me of music's "good old days?"  Maybe it's none of them - or maybe it's all of them - whatever it is, to me, and many other consumers, records are still relevant in today's world of iPods, Pandora playlists, and digital music pirates.

CD's, on the other hand, are a thing of the past, as they have dropped in sales in eight of the last nine years.  It's amazing how quickly CD's have declined as the American public's first choice for music consumption.  The music section's at Target, Best Buy, and elsewhere seemingly lose an aisle of CD's each time I patronize their stores.  At the same time, companies like Furnace MFG capitalize on the revival of records.

I personally think this speaks to how technology has transformed consumer general interest in the last ten years.  It seems that in this day and age consumers value authenticity, convenience, and efficiency more than anything else.  As recent research suggests, mp3s and the internet have created a "culture of free" so to speak - where finding, obtaining, and listening to music has never been easier.  However, for some reason, vinyl records are thriving at the same time.  This suggests that consumers want one of two things when purchasing (or pirating) new music: instant (and free) gratification or nostalgic satisfaction. Therefore, CD's are the odd man out in an already declining music industry as they don't deliver the same authenticity as records or nor the same level of expediency as mp3s. 

Do you still buy CD's?  Do you think the music industry will utlimately benefity or suffer from recent techonogical developments?  Has iTunes transformed the way you approach music?  Is an iTunes playlist or a classic record more appealing to you?

Just another Tiger Woods Blog...

I know we all are probably suffering from Tiger Woods overload at this point. Although the media storm had died down and it had been six weeks since another mistress came out of the woodwork or vague statement had been posted on Tigers' Web site, I couldn’t resist.

There’s been a Tiger sighting! Well, maybe… Recent reports have surfaced throughout the last week that Tiger was holed up in a Mississippi sexual addiction rehab clinic. “Sources” reported Tiger sighting’s throughout the small town of Hattiesburg. Then came the photo. First shown on Radaronline.com and published by the National Inquirer, the photo certainly looks like Tiger, doesn’t it? I let you decide but in the court of public opinion, Tiger has been located.

Either way, this is just the latest chapter that is the PR nightmare for Tiger Woods. While it’s certainly a step in the right direction for Tiger personally to get the help he needs, what worse way would there be for this information to be found than plastered on the front pages of the National Inquirer (again)? By not controlling the situation and information being dispersed, Tiger’s camp is again allowing his public perception to be made by the tabloids. Not really the people you want to trust to make you look good.

America loves nothing more than a comeback story, just ask Andy Pettitte of the New York Yankeeswho quickly admitted his HGH use when he was named in baseball’s Mitchell report and was one of the heroes of New York’s World Series championship. Tiger cannot start his comeback until he faces the information that has been discovered since that fateful day in November and lets the world know what he is doing to help get his life back on track. Otherwise, this won’t be the last grainy photo that may or may not be Tiger to be posted on the cover of a tabloid.

He Tweets, She Tweets, Everybody Tweet Tweets: Tools to make sense of Twitter mania

 

The Twitter Phenomenon:

Whether you like it or not, Twitter has taken the social media world by storm. Its user members are still dwarfed in comparison to Facebook's or Myspace's numbers but the site experienced more than a 2500% increase in users in May 2009. And though numbers suggest that the 2009 summer spike was followed by a brief flat-lined period, by January 11, 2010, Twitter had almost quadrupled its 2008 member numbers - going from roughly 6 million users to 22 million users. This growing popularity makes Twitter suprememly important for businesses and individuals seeking an edge. No other media platform makes it easier to share and consume real-time updates about developments in specific industries, sporting events, or, even, personal lives. It's the news, instant messenger, and reality TV all rolled into one - no wonder America has fallen in love.

But like every other social media outlet, it may or may not make sense for your brand, whether it's your company's or your personal brand. In our case, the recent launch of the 919 Marketing Twitter page made sense because it is an excellent platform through which we can help our clients communicate with consumers, share knowledge/gain knowledge and create conversations with other industry professionals, and, most importantly, listen to developments both within marketing and PR and within our clients' industries.

 

Tools to Help You Maximize Your Twitter Presence:

Rachel Levy has done a superb job organizing most of them for you so you can choose the best Twitter applications for your company. My five favorites, in no particular order, are as follows:

Tweetdeck: My favorite way to keep track of Twitter and Facebook updates, Twitter mentions, Facebook photo uploads, etc. This program enables you to consolidate all of your real time updates from each one of your Facebook and Twitter accounts into one place. You can also create lists to sement industries or people you follow.

Freetwitterdesigner: Not enough Twitter users take advantage of their twitter background capabilities. With tools like this, you can customize your background with more information about yourself or your company in text or pictures. Twitter's default backgrounds may not represent your brand well - take advantage of this site to personalize your page(s).

Klout: This application provides you with graphs that track your personal impact on Twitter. It tracks the content you create, what fellow tweeters do with the content, and how far your account's reach extends. Once that data is compiled it also provides you with tips on how to tweak your contributions to better achieve your goals.

 
Tweetbeep: This program functions in a similar fashion to google alerts - you receive emails when your keywords have been retweeted or mentioned. Simply use the program to track important keywords so you can interact with specific tweeple or respond to positive/negative feedback about your brand.

 
Topify: Quite simply, this tool combines the power of your Twitter and email accounts. When you get new follower alerts it provides you with a better background on them so you can decide whether or not to follow them without having to review their profile online. It also allows you to send direct messages directly from your email account.

What's your favorite Twitter application? How have you used Twitter to promote yourself? Your company? Have you found it useful?

Business Week Warns “Beware Social Media Snake Oil”

I read a great article from BusinessWeek recently entitled “Beware Social Media Snake Oil.”The article discussed whether or not you can really measure the ROI of social media like you can with traditional PR measures and whether trying out new campaigns through social media is really the right move for your company.

Several interesting issues were brought up, like when you ask an employee to start working on social media- do they spend hours of wasted time because they don’t have any direction for what they are attempting to accomplish? Or, if you go out and spend thousands of dollars buying software systems to measure your success in social media, then no one understands how to use the software - what is the point?

 There are plenty of people out their claiming to be "social media experts" that guarantee a social media campaign is going to work for you and then charge a ridiculous amount of money to “consult” you on how to do it. As James Cooper, digital creative director for Saatchi, says, “Anyone who says, ‘This is going to work,’ is either lying or deranged.” While social media may have worked extremely well for some companies, like Starbucks, Dell and Ford Motor Company, it has been very unsuccessful for companies like Toyota, with their failed attempt at a “Punk’d” type social media campaign which ended up only gaining them a $10 million lawsuit and a lot of bad publicity.

Also, does every company actually need social media, or do they just want to be involved with the "buzz" word. Take the example offered in the article about a company that was getting funding from the Defense Department and was allocated $4 million for social media. The problem was, the Pentagon is “privacy-obsessed” and it was determined that their suppliers publicizing themselves through Twitter was not the greatest idea. Exactly! Social media doesn’t work for everyone.

Just remember that measuring ROI from social media the same way you measured ROI from traditional PR methods is difficult. A Twittering employee may develop trust and goodwill for your brand as a result of their efforts, but would have trouble putting a hard number on how they are influencing your sales and enhancing your brand. That is why social media is, in essence, its own game. A game that you should get into only after careful research into why you would need it, what you think you can gain from it and who can help you reach those goals.

It's called the telephone - use it

Everyone has a purpose during each and every workday.  Calling on the services of others is typically a standard procedure no matter what your position.  Working in the PR and Marketing world you must rely on others to call you back when you are asking a question, pitching a story or trying to lay the ground work for a great marketing collaboration. 

One thing that has ALWAYS bothered me is when people fail to call back or even shoot a quick email in response to a question or story idea.  I don't know about you, but for me, the only thing worse than hearing "no" or "that's a terrible story" is hearing nothing at all.  I respect someone that at least has the good will to return a phone call - it's called being nice.  I work with reporters all the time, and the ones that take a few minutes out of their day to speak with me, are the ones I respect and will continue to work with and embargo information.

Just remember - your job, no matter what it is - eventually will rely on people returning your calls. 

I just hope you get what is coming to you.

Obama Pol-Cation Tour?

Like most of his predecessors - President Obama’s image has been up and down during his first year in office.  Now, in an effort to keep his approval ratings up he has taken to the road. I’m talking about his healthcare policy and his work to gain support around it.

Right now, Obama is on vacation and the West Coast swing of his healthcare tour, which is bringing even more controversy to his policies. The most current poll shows that 49% of those surveyed disapprove of the healthcare policy and 43% approve. With basically a split, Obama is working to speak directly to “the common man” (the way he won the presidency in the first place).

Obama is spending his time out west checking out several national parks with his family and plans to stop at a few town hall meetings in Montana and Colorado on the way to promote his healthcare policy. His goal is to attend at least three question and answer sessions at town hall meetings to address what he is calling “misunderstanding and misinformation.”

On the one hand, this is a good way to get some positive PR, reach out to small-town folks and try to gain their support for his plan. On the other, many people are upset that he is taking yet another vacation with the family, seeing as he has already taken 55 days off in his seven months of service.

There have been protests every time that Obama has been somewhere to promote his plan, but the president’s advocates say that the protests have not been representative of the entire population.

So what do you think about how Obama is handling his critics? Whether you agree with his healthcare policy or not, the real issue is how his image will hold up. Is this good or bad PR? How do you think this vacation/healthcare tour will overall affect the president’s image?

Marketing Opportunities Await, Is “The Machine” Man Enough to Make them Work?

 

What do you think when you think of Albert Pujols?  Triple Crown Threat?  World Series Champ?  Half-Man, Half-Machine?  Regardless, whether you’re a Cards lover or hater it’s impossible to pinpoint a weakness in his game.  Just look at his stats this year: .332 BA, 32 HR, 87 RBI, .456 OBP, .723 SLG, 1.179 OPS, and 10 SB.  He’s putting up those numbers (1^st in the MLB in each category above except BA and SB’s) while striking out only 35 times in 307 at bats and consistently making highlight reel plays at first base.  Quite frankly, the man is having an absurd season and will have a more than legitimate chance to become the first triple crown winner since Yaz in the sixties.

What’s even more absurd is that he’s having a career year (or as close to a career year as a lifetime .334 BA, .427 OBP, .630 SLG hitter can achieve) and he has rarely been the top headline.  As in the past, the media has been fixated with underdog stories like Zack Greinke and Raul Ibanez and the continuing steroids saga as A-Rod and Sammy Sosa have been exposed as former users.  The media loves new or controversial stories: phenoms like Bryce Harper, lovable underdogs like last year’s Rays, and, obviously, Manny continuing to be Manny (whatever that means nowadays). 

In the midst of the fresh excitement, this year, like every other year, you’ll find Albert being, well, Albert.  ESPN got it right: he is no doubt “a machine.”  But where is his media buzz?  Why do we see Josh Hamilton, and not Pujols, on ESPN every day when he was on the DL for the better part of the first half?  Why does Jimmy Rollins, and not Pujols, lock up a lucrative deal with Red Bull when his career and season numbers pale in comparison?

I’ll tell you why: Albert hasn’t achieved his marketable potential.  Sure he just signed a deal with Nike but he is far from the face of that brand.  He is well-spoken and well-intentioned as he possesses a humble personality and has established his own charity but he lacks the charisma and charm that drive marketability.  What’s his story?  What challenges has he faced in his life?  What are his interests?  What does he do away from the field?  WHO IS ALBERT PUJOLS?

Obviously, nothing is better for your marketing potential than being a machine on the field.  His in-game production, flawless image, and superb baseball IQ have won him excellent credibility amongst his teammates and other players.  But until Albert can shed the mechanical image off the field, his marketability will remain low.  For endorsement deals to work there must be a solid connection between the athlete’s interests and the brand he/she is promoting.  Only then will the athlete endorsement ring true with fans and consumers alike. 

So please Albert fill out a simple survey and list out your favorite consumer products.  Talking to a copy machine is great, but you can do so much more because you are, quite simply, “El Hombre.”  

Opportunity Knocking Wins Ad Agency Blog of the Month!

During the heart of baseball season, the online world witnessed a different type of fierce competition as the 919 Marketing blog held strong in Michael Gass’ Fuel Lines blog’s Ad Agency Blog of the Month contest.

In a tight race that went down to the wire, Opportunity Knocking outlasted the field, earning 260 of the 673 votes cast.  I wanted to personally thank anyone and everyone who voted for our blog.   It really means a lot and shows that you see value in the advertising, marketing and public relations worlds. It also gives us confidence that what we are doing is not in vain and you look to us for knowledge and insight. Without your votes, we could never have won - so thank you all.

By winning the June edition of the competition, we will be pitted against the other 11 winners of the year at the end of 2009 in a blog of the year competition -so be on the watch for that. We anticipate another tight race with a lot of good competition and we can’t do it without your support.

Keep checking back here for the latest insight on all things advertising, marketing, and PR!

 

Hang Your Hat On These Business Moves

CNN Money recently published their mid-year edition of the “Dumbest Moments in Business 2009 - Midyear Edition.”

The list is certainly interesting, or possibly upsetting, depending on whether you want to laugh or cry about decisions some of these multi-million dollar executives are making. When I first saw the headline for this list, I didn’t know what could be worse than the CEO's of GM, Ford and Chrysler and their private jet excursion to plead for public funds - but some of these just might be.

My 2009 favorites (or least favorites, however you want to look at it) are: GM’s decision to partner with Segway and unleash a useless vehicle right after its bailout; Apple’s “Baby Shaker” app; Bank of America CEO’s $35K “commode on legs;” New York Yankees’ $200K seats in the middle of a recession; and Mark Sanford’s (SC governor)… well, everything.

What were your favorites? Anything missing from the list?

 $1,250 per game ticket? In a recession? The public says NO!

 

One Blogs Favorite Blogs

 

Being a blogger myself (albeit an inconsistent one) and hoping that people value my “insight”, I like to reciprocate by reading other people’s blogs as well.

Now I would like to give credit where credit is due.

The following is a list of blogs that I have linked up to my Google Reader and consistently check to get fresh ideas and see witty insight from some key Internet/marketing professionals:

www.guykawasaki.com - enjoyable take on products and marketing campaigns

www.sethgodin.typepad.com - Quite possibly "THE" blog on marketing

www.ignitesocialmedia.com - great insight from the entire staff on how social media marketing can help your brand

www.perrybelcher.com - an in-your-face look at marketing and sales

www.digitalcapitalism.com - exhaustive look at social media marketing and everything internet

www.altitudebranding.com - social media and marketing from one seriously smart woman

www.techcrunch.com - EVERYTHING technology