I must confess, until my lease expired two weeks ago, I drove a Mercedes SUV. The big one. I called him Doug (the license tag assigned to me was DUG 487, thus the nickname). Doug and I had a fairly good relationship, as far as cars and I go. His […]

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By Kaira Sturdivant Rouda
Every month I’m excited to read my favorite magazine. I open the glossy cover with its witty teasers to find: full-color, beautiful woman, product, no substance (flip). Repeat. Repeat. Great content (finally!). Flawless woman, product (flip). It’s a vicious cycle. I quickly move past the ads to get to the good stuff. […]

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The latest buzzword  in marketing is Engagement . Progressive  marketers aim to engaging their customers, in  user-advertiser interaction.  These activities  include commenting, sharing on a social network, playing a video, even clicking on a banner.  Does it work? Traffic is great. But many people question whether engagement marketing has an ROI.  On the one hand […]

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James Gregory - CEO CoreBrand
In previous recessions, the marketing communications field and related practices (advertising, public relations, brand consulting, etc.) were frequently crushed, while the financial sector remained comparatively unscathed. This time things seem to be different.
Marketing communications has traditionally been a bellwether for changing economic conditions. As clients gradually began to cut back their […]

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by Delia Passi
Women are natural communicators. Put a bunch of us together, and almost all of us will have something to add to the conversation. We have opinions, and we like to share them.
This tendency to communicate with each other is probably based on our primitive instincts. I recently heard that women were […]

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How To Make Proper Use Of Ad Networks, is a nice piece by Cory Treffiletti, written for Media Post warning that most media planners are using ad networks incorrectly and therefore inefficiently. Cory writes there are basically 3 types of network; the general networks - like Valueclick, Tribal Fusion, the behavioral networks - Blue […]

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by Andrea Learned
It is always nice to see a glimmer of hope from a brand in a very troubled industry - especially one that so represents the can-do history of America. And, so it was when I read a MediaPost article by Karl Greenberg about Chrysler’s new consumer advisory board (aka CAB). For […]

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Where the Boys Are in the Mall? (no, this is not geo-location for teenage girls) the answer… not where you might assume, according to a recent Harris Interactive study commissioned by Men’s Health magazine. Despite the popular cliché, men actually do like to shop.
Perhaps not quite the fashionistas, men are buying […]

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by Andrea Learned
Forcing an issue is rarely a good idea. Human beings, whether consciously or not, will sense that pressure and resist, because they want to feel like they made their decision on their own terms. Whether in interpersonal relationships or the marketing realm (and many others), the hardest thing to do is simply present […]

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by Andrea Learned
Excuse me if I yawn while I type… I was up late watching the Academy Awards last night trying to keep my eyes open until the Best Picture was announced. I doubt that I was the only viewer who just couldn’t make it.
Advertisers have taken over the Oscars, and it would seem […]

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