I admit it; I’m obsessed with Mad Men. I know I’m not the only one. I suspect part of my fascination is because I work in advertising. The stories are good and the characters are interesting but for me I love seeing what went on before and comparing it to what I see every day at work.
Things that are different between Mad Men and current agency life:
Clothes- of course there are the obvious style changes that you see in clothing and hair from that time period compared to today. But what I see is the change in attitude on what is acceptable to wear.
Today many of the offices I have been around tend to adopt a more casual atmosphere and dress code. The feeling is that creative people need to be comfortable and to relax to do their job. No one would think to ask them to come to work in suits or dresses.
Secretaries- I can’t remember the last time I have been in an office where someone was referred to as the secretary. Today everyone has administrative assistants to help. Many bosses today that have assistants treat them as assistants to help with projects and other management tasks. They wouldn’t waste the admins time having them type letters. Computers have made it easier for managers to do their own typing and that plays a part. But Don Draper would think it was beneath him to use the typewriter.
Smoking/drinking- I know plenty of advertising people that have their vices. But the overall attitude today is that you try to keep them out of the office. It wouldn’t be acceptable to light up in the office or take a drink during working hours. They wait till they leave the office for those things.
Most of these changes can be attributed to changes in our society and not just advertising. Especially obvious changes are there are no minorities in the office and Peggy is the only woman working that isn’t a secretary.
That is what makes this so fascinating to me is that it’s easy to ignore how things were especially before you were born and listen when people talk about the good old days. But to see them played out in my industry against today’s standards reminds me that maybe today isn’t that bad.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Apple store coming to Philly
The kindest thing I can say about the economy in the past few years is that it has had some “issues”. But no matter how bad things got amazingly people still found the cash to buy whatever new gadget Apple was selling. Sometimes that required sleeping in line for days to be the first to own the latest version of the Iphone or the Ipad. The brand Apple is pretty much synonymous with marketing success. Even the products they have released with technology issues are still selling.
So I know all the Apple fans are going to be thrilled to know Apple is about to open its first store in Philadelphia. The store is located at 1607 Walnut Street. It will open on Friday 7/30/10 at 5:00 pm.
They are going to be giving out 1000 free T-shirts to the first 1000 visitors. These shirts have been created specifically for the Philly location. That means when they are gone they are gone for good. All those that are fan of anything Apple aren’t going to want to miss out on their chance to get one of the shirts that were designed for our town.
Whether you are a fan of Apple products or not, you have to admire any brand that can command that type of loyalty and can still get consumers to come out and spend.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Old Spice success for social media
Recently Old Spice came out with commercials featuring Isaiah Mustafa, the "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" as their campaign. The television ads moved onto a series of ads on YouTube that featured questions sent in using Twitter.
The popularity of this campaign has spread across the internet and has been a huge success for showing how viral media can spread. But as of now the success is more for social media than for Old Spice. Their sales aren’t showing the same level of popularity.
The one constant that they have in their favor is that everyone does know it’s an Old Spice commercial. Which is more than I can say at the end of most Super Bowls when after watching the commercials; I remember the commercial but forget the product.
So the brand recognition and getting people to talk about them is definitely working. Old Spice is trying to overcome years as being known as an older man’s product. So to expect any single campaign to change that thinking by the consumer in such a short amount of time is really an impossible task.
They are on the right track and if they can take this momentum and build on it to increase awareness then they have a chance to lure in younger men who would be willing to buy the product or for women who shop for their men to give it a chance.
The popularity of this campaign has spread across the internet and has been a huge success for showing how viral media can spread. But as of now the success is more for social media than for Old Spice. Their sales aren’t showing the same level of popularity.
The one constant that they have in their favor is that everyone does know it’s an Old Spice commercial. Which is more than I can say at the end of most Super Bowls when after watching the commercials; I remember the commercial but forget the product.
So the brand recognition and getting people to talk about them is definitely working. Old Spice is trying to overcome years as being known as an older man’s product. So to expect any single campaign to change that thinking by the consumer in such a short amount of time is really an impossible task.
They are on the right track and if they can take this momentum and build on it to increase awareness then they have a chance to lure in younger men who would be willing to buy the product or for women who shop for their men to give it a chance.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Incoming students can frustrate college admissions offices
Colleges look for the opportunity to showcase their facilities to potential students so they can increase their enrollment. In the past it was simple. If someone wanted to know about a school then they contacted the admissions office. The office was happy to talk with them and send a brochure. The office could offer in addition to brochures, counselors and other course material. This also gave them the opportunity to interact with the student and determine their interests and if they would be a good fit for the school.
Websites have now become a major source of information for kids who are used to getting all of their information and news online. But this can be a problem for the schools. When someone calls they are identified as a potential candidate that can be marketed to for admission. But kids who get all their research online and then choose the schools they want to apply to aren’t known to the admissions office till the application arrives.
Many schools are marketing by retargeting these students. When they come to the website if they leave without registering their information then when they leave ads will follow them as they travel the web. The goal is to give them a strong call to action to get them back to the site and fill out information so they can be identified.
These electronic marketing tools help schools find out more about these kids so they can share with them the facts about the school that will increase their enrollment. It's another way colleges can use interactive technology for their benefit.
Websites have now become a major source of information for kids who are used to getting all of their information and news online. But this can be a problem for the schools. When someone calls they are identified as a potential candidate that can be marketed to for admission. But kids who get all their research online and then choose the schools they want to apply to aren’t known to the admissions office till the application arrives.
Many schools are marketing by retargeting these students. When they come to the website if they leave without registering their information then when they leave ads will follow them as they travel the web. The goal is to give them a strong call to action to get them back to the site and fill out information so they can be identified.
These electronic marketing tools help schools find out more about these kids so they can share with them the facts about the school that will increase their enrollment. It's another way colleges can use interactive technology for their benefit.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Comcast and social media
Is social media a good option for every organization? That is the question facing many organizations as they try to see how this can fit into their marketing strategies. They want to know the ROI and exactly what benefits this can offer.
But then there are companies that face special concerns. What do you do if you are a huge corporation who is usually the butt of jokes and tends to be disliked by many of your customers. That is the challenge facing Comcast.
When people want to watch cable television in many cases there aren’t a lot of choices available to them. In the Philadelphia area you either have Comcast, satellite, or Verizon fios if it is available.
This pretty much gives Comcast the type of control many companies would envy. If you want cable television, then there aren’t a lot of choices and you get customers that choose you because they hate you a little less than your competitors.
This could explain why Comcast has no social media presence. If they had a Facebook page how would they handle it? They would have customers telling cable horror stories and venting their frustration.
If you want to see how that would work, check out the Verizon Fios page www.facebook/verizonfios. The Verizon page seems to have someone full time responding to customer issues. You do see customers who are extremely unhappy with the services but you also see others who love what they have to offer.
You have to acknowledge and give credit that Verizon is willing to open themselves up to criticism. By Comcast not offering any social media outlets it makes you feel they are less confident about their product that they really don’t want to hear what consumers have to say about their service.
What do you think? Do you feel Comcast is taking the easy way out by not providing social media for customers?
But then there are companies that face special concerns. What do you do if you are a huge corporation who is usually the butt of jokes and tends to be disliked by many of your customers. That is the challenge facing Comcast.
When people want to watch cable television in many cases there aren’t a lot of choices available to them. In the Philadelphia area you either have Comcast, satellite, or Verizon fios if it is available.
This pretty much gives Comcast the type of control many companies would envy. If you want cable television, then there aren’t a lot of choices and you get customers that choose you because they hate you a little less than your competitors.
This could explain why Comcast has no social media presence. If they had a Facebook page how would they handle it? They would have customers telling cable horror stories and venting their frustration.
If you want to see how that would work, check out the Verizon Fios page www.facebook/verizonfios. The Verizon page seems to have someone full time responding to customer issues. You do see customers who are extremely unhappy with the services but you also see others who love what they have to offer.
You have to acknowledge and give credit that Verizon is willing to open themselves up to criticism. By Comcast not offering any social media outlets it makes you feel they are less confident about their product that they really don’t want to hear what consumers have to say about their service.
What do you think? Do you feel Comcast is taking the easy way out by not providing social media for customers?
Monday, July 19, 2010
How to use your Facebook fans
What do you do with your Facebook fans? Some organizations seem to feel the goal is to “collect” fans or people who like their page. But once you get them what are you doing for them or with them to thank them for coming to your page.
Getting Facebook fans isn’t a game or shouldn’t be a competition to get more likes than your competitor. These fans are your customers and you don’t want to have them on your page and then ignore them.
These people have come to you and said they like your product or service and you should show your appreciation for this fact. The idea of having fans is to engage with them on some level. You want them to know that you sincerely appreciate their support and that you want to show that by offering something in return.
Things you can do with your Facebook fans are:
Coupons/Giveaways- Everyone likes something either for free or a discount. Let your Facebook audience know they are special and give them deals that are only available through your Facebook page.
Insider information- Many companies or organizations introduce new products or services as a way to increase their business. Make sure your social community is the first to hear of what you are doing.
Listen- Companies spend a lot of money on focus groups. These groups help determine your strategies and how you spend your advertising money. Listen to your social community. They have come to you because they like what you are doing, so ask them how they feel about potential changes.
Building your social communities shouldn’t be a popularity contest. These fans can offer real value to building your brand and increasing sales if you use it correctly.
Getting Facebook fans isn’t a game or shouldn’t be a competition to get more likes than your competitor. These fans are your customers and you don’t want to have them on your page and then ignore them.
These people have come to you and said they like your product or service and you should show your appreciation for this fact. The idea of having fans is to engage with them on some level. You want them to know that you sincerely appreciate their support and that you want to show that by offering something in return.
Things you can do with your Facebook fans are:
Coupons/Giveaways- Everyone likes something either for free or a discount. Let your Facebook audience know they are special and give them deals that are only available through your Facebook page.
Insider information- Many companies or organizations introduce new products or services as a way to increase their business. Make sure your social community is the first to hear of what you are doing.
Listen- Companies spend a lot of money on focus groups. These groups help determine your strategies and how you spend your advertising money. Listen to your social community. They have come to you because they like what you are doing, so ask them how they feel about potential changes.
Building your social communities shouldn’t be a popularity contest. These fans can offer real value to building your brand and increasing sales if you use it correctly.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Recruitment and social media
Due to the economy, recruitment has been the last thing on the minds of most organizations. But some industries are starting to pick up and starting to look for new talent.
In the past HR has relied on print and job board postings. It was a matter of choosing publications, designing ads and looking at job board contracts. You placed your ads and waited for resumes to arrive.
Now social media is another way that HR can find talent. Social media has become most attached to an organizations marketing or communications office. But HR and talent acquisition can find that social media can be a big help for cost effective recruitment.
Some reasons include:
1. Relationship building- social media gives you a chance to talk to candidates before they apply. If you don’t have a spot for them this is the time you can interact with them and keep them in your pipeline for future recruiting opportunities.
2. Employee Referral- Most organizations understand the value of employee referrals. No one knows your business better than your current employees. Us your social program as a referral program. Let people know what positions are available and let them share with their contacts.
3. Retention- No matter how hard you try to let candidates know about your organization and job responsibilities there are always cases where someone comes to work for you and then leaves. Once they are on the job they feel it isn’t a good fit. Use your social program to really educate candidates on the day to day happenings. You can use current employees and even video to really stress what will be involved and help cut turnover.
Social media doesn’t just have to be a marketing tool; by identifying your goals, Hr can incorporate this into their strategies.
In the past HR has relied on print and job board postings. It was a matter of choosing publications, designing ads and looking at job board contracts. You placed your ads and waited for resumes to arrive.
Now social media is another way that HR can find talent. Social media has become most attached to an organizations marketing or communications office. But HR and talent acquisition can find that social media can be a big help for cost effective recruitment.
Some reasons include:
1. Relationship building- social media gives you a chance to talk to candidates before they apply. If you don’t have a spot for them this is the time you can interact with them and keep them in your pipeline for future recruiting opportunities.
2. Employee Referral- Most organizations understand the value of employee referrals. No one knows your business better than your current employees. Us your social program as a referral program. Let people know what positions are available and let them share with their contacts.
3. Retention- No matter how hard you try to let candidates know about your organization and job responsibilities there are always cases where someone comes to work for you and then leaves. Once they are on the job they feel it isn’t a good fit. Use your social program to really educate candidates on the day to day happenings. You can use current employees and even video to really stress what will be involved and help cut turnover.
Social media doesn’t just have to be a marketing tool; by identifying your goals, Hr can incorporate this into their strategies.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Is your social community too quiet?
If you set up your social media sites and you get no comments do you think it’s not working? That question is asked every day by companies and organizations that post updates and information and never seem to have any comments.
But it’s not necessarily true. Forrester research has developed a graphic depicting a ladder to show people where your audience falls in how they participate in social sites.
1. Creators- These are the people who are actively involved with things like publishing blogs and web pages.
2. Conversationalists- This group is interested in visiting sites and engaging in conversations.
3. Critics- Loves to comment on blogs and rate products.
4. Collectors- The people who can’t get enough information and live for RSS feeds of new info.
5. Joiners-Feel like being a part of a group is their goal in life and joins a variety of different sites.
6. Spectators- The largest group of people who just like to watch and listen. They don’t feel a need to participate or add comments. But they are looking at your message.
7. Inactive- those that don’t join or use any social sites.
The picture shows that spectators are your largest group. They will follow you, look at your facebook page and Youtube videos but might never let you know they are there. So just because you don’t hear them, you need to make sure you aren’t ignoring them.
But it’s not necessarily true. Forrester research has developed a graphic depicting a ladder to show people where your audience falls in how they participate in social sites.
1. Creators- These are the people who are actively involved with things like publishing blogs and web pages.
2. Conversationalists- This group is interested in visiting sites and engaging in conversations.
3. Critics- Loves to comment on blogs and rate products.
4. Collectors- The people who can’t get enough information and live for RSS feeds of new info.
5. Joiners-Feel like being a part of a group is their goal in life and joins a variety of different sites.
6. Spectators- The largest group of people who just like to watch and listen. They don’t feel a need to participate or add comments. But they are looking at your message.
7. Inactive- those that don’t join or use any social sites.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Big brother is watching
Now that the official season of the television show Big Brother is back on the air, it makes me think of reading the book 1984 in high school. Back then the idea of being watched and your every move scrutinized by Big Brother was terrifying. Now we have people fighting to get onto the show.
Big Brother wanted to tap into your every thought and action, but his work would be easy today. Look at social media. People think nothing of posting their every thought. They tell their thoughts and feelings and don’t think about posting or who can tap into that information.
You used to worry about being watched but now with Foursquare and other gps software people broadcast their locations to anyone that will listen. This free flow of information that we give is being captured and tabulated. It forms a profile about us and our habits so that advertisers can serve us targeted ads.
Some people realize the ads that show up when they are online are targeted and appreciate having this information sent to them and others just think it’s a coincidence when a product or service comes up that is just what they need. Either way no one seems overly concerned that this is able to happen.
What do you think? Are you bothered by how much information about you are online for people to find and that advertisers know your likes and habits? Let us know.
Big Brother wanted to tap into your every thought and action, but his work would be easy today. Look at social media. People think nothing of posting their every thought. They tell their thoughts and feelings and don’t think about posting or who can tap into that information.
You used to worry about being watched but now with Foursquare and other gps software people broadcast their locations to anyone that will listen. This free flow of information that we give is being captured and tabulated. It forms a profile about us and our habits so that advertisers can serve us targeted ads.
Some people realize the ads that show up when they are online are targeted and appreciate having this information sent to them and others just think it’s a coincidence when a product or service comes up that is just what they need. Either way no one seems overly concerned that this is able to happen.
What do you think? Are you bothered by how much information about you are online for people to find and that advertisers know your likes and habits? Let us know.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Good bosses are hard to find
How much value does a good boss or manager bring to your organization? It might be easy to think that one person doesn’t make a huge difference but to your workers this can be a huge influence.
If your workers like their boss then they tend to be happier and more productive. I have seen companies institute cutback and employees stay because of their manager. It’s not easy finding a boss you like and when you do then they tend to be loyal to the boss more than to the company. The will work harder and in general be more productive.
So what constitutes a “good boss”? This can be very subjective depending on the employee.
1. Usually good bosses tend to be fair. They will listen to employee issues and try to work out a fair solution.
2. Managers that are knowledgeable can be a great asset. They can support employees and help with issues. They also appreciate the challenges of the job so they don’t ask for unreasonable requests.
3. Supportive bosses are those that will take up their issues with superiors. They know if working conditions are unfair and aren’t afraid to take it to management to improve conditions.
What traits do you think qualify you to be a good boss? Share these and any stories of bosses you felt fit this model.
If your workers like their boss then they tend to be happier and more productive. I have seen companies institute cutback and employees stay because of their manager. It’s not easy finding a boss you like and when you do then they tend to be loyal to the boss more than to the company. The will work harder and in general be more productive.
So what constitutes a “good boss”? This can be very subjective depending on the employee.
1. Usually good bosses tend to be fair. They will listen to employee issues and try to work out a fair solution.
2. Managers that are knowledgeable can be a great asset. They can support employees and help with issues. They also appreciate the challenges of the job so they don’t ask for unreasonable requests.
3. Supportive bosses are those that will take up their issues with superiors. They know if working conditions are unfair and aren’t afraid to take it to management to improve conditions.
What traits do you think qualify you to be a good boss? Share these and any stories of bosses you felt fit this model.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Justifying CEO Salaries
Salaries for CEO’s are a major expenditure for any company. The general rule is that you get what you pay for. The next most repeated seems to be that to get top talent then you have to pay top dollar. At least that is what executives say, probably as their reasoning for their salaries.
Recently the top 100 best paid CEO’s in the Philadelphia area was published. At the top of the list is Brian Roberts of Comcast who makes just over 24 million dollars. The range went down to number 100 and Jeffrey Graves of C&D Technology who makes just over $1.5 million dollars.
It really comes down to do you think executives deserve this type of compensation. Or asking what unique skills does one individual have that makes a company willing to pay these large sums to keep them in their organization.
These salaries can strike a bad note especially in this economy. As a consumer companies you use are raising prices, if you have Comcast I'm betting your cable bill hasn't gone down recently. Or companies are cutting back services in response to belt tightening but their executive team is still making these types of salaries. There are workers who are losing their jobs or are being asked to take pay cuts and yet the company justifies these salaries as necessary.
Banks that failed explained bonuses and salaries that were paid by saying if they don’t pay the talent will leave and that will make them less competitive and they will lose more money which will upset stockholders. When you consider these were "failing" banks, maybe it would have been a good idea to lose some of that talent.
What do you think; is there justification for these salaries? Are they really necessary to help a company stay competitive?
Let's close the CEO salary loophole.: An article from: Dollars & Sense
Enjoy this article, then become a follower of Marketing Concepts. If you have questions e-mail direct to mc.sandymiller@gmail.com or follow me on twitter @sandeemiller.
Recently the top 100 best paid CEO’s in the Philadelphia area was published. At the top of the list is Brian Roberts of Comcast who makes just over 24 million dollars. The range went down to number 100 and Jeffrey Graves of C&D Technology who makes just over $1.5 million dollars.
It really comes down to do you think executives deserve this type of compensation. Or asking what unique skills does one individual have that makes a company willing to pay these large sums to keep them in their organization.
These salaries can strike a bad note especially in this economy. As a consumer companies you use are raising prices, if you have Comcast I'm betting your cable bill hasn't gone down recently. Or companies are cutting back services in response to belt tightening but their executive team is still making these types of salaries. There are workers who are losing their jobs or are being asked to take pay cuts and yet the company justifies these salaries as necessary.
Banks that failed explained bonuses and salaries that were paid by saying if they don’t pay the talent will leave and that will make them less competitive and they will lose more money which will upset stockholders. When you consider these were "failing" banks, maybe it would have been a good idea to lose some of that talent.
What do you think; is there justification for these salaries? Are they really necessary to help a company stay competitive?
Let's close the CEO salary loophole.: An article from: Dollars & Sense
Enjoy this article, then become a follower of Marketing Concepts. If you have questions e-mail direct to mc.sandymiller@gmail.com or follow me on twitter @sandeemiller.
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