Casual Fridays

What’s more valuable than a product to sell? How about a person who’ll buy?
While explaining the blockbuster success of Broadway’s upcoming Odd Couple, Seth Godin makes a not so odd statement.
The lesson is that the new marketing makes it a lot easier to make products for your customers (instead of having to run around […]

Thanks to Erica, who pointed out Jones Soda. I knew they accepted submitted photos to use on their product packaging. I didn’t think of them as one that might receive submissions via their website.
Unlike Taco Bell (see Talking Sauce) and Dentyne, Jones Soda has set up galleries of their many labels. What […]

In discussing the placement of media planning (whether with ad agencies or with media services agencies) a recent Ad Age article (free subscription required) gives a great quote.

Anomaly’s new-business director, Jason DeLand, said the firm has turned down a number of clients on the basis of their media approach. “When it starts and stops with […]

Per Bruce and (of course) Seth, Gilette has announced they will unveil a 5-blade razor in early 2006.
Somebody please remind me, what is the benefit of multiple blades? Multiple opportunities to cut myself? Originally, I believe they touted that you could get a smooth shave with one stroke of the razor. So, […]

Advertising and the Christian faith make strange bedfellows.
My wife and I are currently going through a small group study by Crown Financial Ministries. The study is intended to help families apply biblical principals to their money management. One of the points they make is that the more TV you watch, the more catalogs […]

OK, by now this AP story is old news.
Here’s the gist:
RICHMOND, Virginia (AP) — A rush to purchase $50 used laptops turned into a violent stampede Tuesday, with people getting thrown to the pavement, beaten with a folding chair and nearly driven over. One woman went so far to wet herself rather than surrender her […]

Thanks to Andrea Learned’s posts on Artistic Tile’s ads this week, was one of those weeks where I wish I didn’t restrict myself to only updating this blog on Fridays.
Concerning Artistic Tile’s provocative ads, Carole Fuller (Director of Strategic Marketing for Smith College) decided to contact the tile company’s VP of Marketing. In her […]

Andrea Learned’s series of posts this week points to the dirty grout surrounding these tile ads.
The problem with ads like these is that they work… temporarily. They get attention and may even get a “decent” response (greater than 2% - wow). But, they’re short-sighted. They don’t create long-term conversations with the market […]

People’s core beliefs form their religion of buying. Seth calls this a worldview, but that word has been difficult for me to sink my teeth into. This maybe a potayto/potahto exercise, but it helped me crystallize my thinking.

Continuing with “Celebrity Day” on Casual Fridays…
There’s a lot of criticism and curiosity swirling around Tom Cruise and his abrupt change in public image. I’m no armchair publicist, so I won’t try to give my advice on what Tom should/should not be doing. Who knows, maybe teenny-bopper love and couch jumping are celebrity […]