MarketingBlurb: February 2006 Archives

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Feb28	Product Placement Exceeds Commercial Time Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Know More: Advertising Marketing Blurb has already alerted readers that product placement is huge. But how big is huge these days? Well according to Media Daily News, “nearly 11 percent of all programming minutes now include some sort of brand reference, and some shows now have more minutes of product placement time than they do TV commercial time.” Read that again slowly. In certain instances, product placements receive more air time than actual commercials! Specifically, the CBS show King of Queens has an average of 18 minutes and 13 seconds of branded content per hour equivalent vs. only 16 minutes and 49 seconds of commercial time. But wait, this gets better (or worse depending on your point of view.) The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, on NBC, has an average of 33 minutes and 51 seconds of branded content per hour vs. only 16 minutes and 32 seconds of commercial time. Some many ponder whether product placement is out of control. Of course, Marketing Blurb knows better—Martha Stewart is out of control. Posted at 6:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb28	Word of Mouth on Steroids Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Buzz is hot. Marketers have always understood the power of word-of-mouth, but it has only been recently, that WOM marketing has achieved the status of a discipline. And while this discipline is still young, WOM pundits are evangelizing business to... Continue Reading Posted at 6:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Heed Boomer Credos Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Marketing Blurb always cautions that demographic and psychographic profiling are never as effective as behavioral analysis. In other words, marketers cannot assume all Gen Y consumers are similar. Instead, marketers must observe actual human behavior for clues to appropriate marketing... Continue Reading Posted at 5:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	March Madness Free Online Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 It’s that time of year again, when countless workplaces across the nation are gearing up for college basketball March Madness. Workers who never even follow the game will reluctantly pitch dollars into the office betting pool, while fanatics will trade... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mars CocoaVia Chocolate Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves chocolate more than the next pundit. Fortunately, recent health studies have confirmed what chocolate-lovers already know, that chocolate is good for you. Chocolate and coffee help build strong bodies 8 ways. (If you recognize that advertising slogan... Continue Reading Posted at 7:56 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb27	Do Real Men Drive Chick Cars? Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb has already explained that women buy more cars (and trucks) than men. So don’t believe automobile manufacturers that car designs must be gender-specific. But if you do decide to convene a focus group of real men, they will... Continue Reading Posted at 1:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	TiVo Ponders Free Boxes Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb cannot find much programming on television worth watching, so the idea that we might actually record something is ludicrous. However, when teaching marketing to adult learners, we discovered that many folks would rather sell their spouse into slavery... Continue Reading Posted at 8:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Elevator Advertising Reach Tops The Wall Street Journal Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not frequent many high rise office buildings. (Our clients prefer back alleys.) But if we did, we would have noticed that elevator advertising is on the rise. In fact, media network Captivate (clever name, huh?) which places... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Microsoft Tops Free Media Metrics Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Regardless of the results, advertising, promotion and public relations are always a hassle. So you might as well garner all the free media mentions you can. In 2005, for example, Microsoft emerged as the leader with 53 billion free impressions from... Continue Reading Posted at 8:18 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mobizzo Mobile Storefront Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Cell phones are annoying enough as it is, but since you must have one, you might as well install mindless celebrity screensavers and pop tune ring tones. But if you really want to go crazy, get ready to sign up... Continue Reading Posted at 7:03 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb25	Save H&R Block Contest Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Okay, you don’t need Marketing Blurb to tell you the well-publicized news that H&R screwed up their own corporate tax return to the tune of $ 32 million. We will leave that story and the fallout to financial pundits. Instead,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Good Help is Easy to Find Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Retail shopping is a pain. For example, you can’t even walk into an appliance or electronics store to buy a television any more. Televisions no longer exist. You are expected to know whether you want high-definition, plasma, LCD, projection, tube,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dress Like Nicky Hilton Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Marketing Blurb is fashion challenged. We often wear our ratty old two-button blue blazer with a yellow pocket silk, and don’t much give a damn about what people think. But ideally, our girlfriend should dress like Nicky Hilton. Fortunately, Nicky... Continue Reading Posted at 10:52 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb24	Get Your Hanes on This Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 With a brand name like Hanes, you cannot resist the temptation to maximize this play on words—Look who we have our Hanes on now. And so it goes for a Hanes advertising campaign featuring Kevin Bacon and Christina Applegate. The... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New York Comic-Con Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 This weekend is New York Comic-Con. Marketing Blurb wishes we could attend, but we moved away from NY ages ago. And Mom sold all our comics in a garage sale. (Whoever purchased those back in about 1971 retired early and... Continue Reading Posted at 3:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	iTunes Billion Song Countdown Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Geez, Marketing Blurb really feels humiliated, because we didn’t even know about the iTunes Music Store Billion Songs Countdown. Okay, so we don’t own an iPod—but can't we just pretend, anyway? Well, if we had been paying attention (and if... Continue Reading Posted at 2:08 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Affluent Women to Watch The Oscars Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Okay, confession time again for Marketing Blurb. We don’t go to the movies. Now don’t get us wrong—we love movies as much as the next pundit. But we do not like movie theatres and movie theatre patrons. Our conventional 27... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mail Guys versus Phone Guys Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Marketing Blurb already warned direct mail marketers to get ready for “do not mail” legislation. Well, the subject is still simmering, and the Direct Marketing Association, DMA, has decided to join a “coalition spearheaded by the Association for Postal Commerce... Continue Reading Posted at 10:33 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb23	Olympic Tin on Madison Avenue Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Like sports fans everywhere, Madison Avenue follows the Olympic Games too—looking for that next superstar to hawk cereal, shoes, clothes, cars, and whatever. But according to The New York Times (free registration required,) no US superstars have emerged from the... Continue Reading Posted at 3:11 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Why Office Productivity is Slumping Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Marketing Blurb already told you about Soup Opera, an attempt by Progresso to engage working women during their lunch break. Well, according to our friends at The New York Post (yes we have friends everywhere—but free registration required,) you ain’t... Continue Reading Posted at 2:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Starbucks to Challenge Dunkin Donuts at Stop & Shop Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Marketing Blurb believes the best way to muck up a retail concept is to open a so-called store-within-a-store. Yes, the practice is common, and yes, the practice is dumb. For example, the only way to make a McDonald's less appealing... Continue Reading Posted at 1:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Single Serve Banana Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 At least once every day, Marketing Blurb encounters a Press Release, News Headline, or Blog Posting that makes no sense at all. (Okay, maybe we are guilty of publishing a few such items ourselves.) But in any event, I just... Continue Reading Posted at 1:00 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	KFC Slow Motion Gambit Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Now you might think that some people ignore television commercials, or certainly zap them if they record television programming. You would be right, naturally. So if Kentucky Fried Chicken wants you to actually watch the new commercial for their new... Continue Reading Posted at 12:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb22	GlaxoSmithKline Public Relations Disaster? Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 You are probably not surprise to learn that drug manufacturers enjoy a consumer reputation just above tobacco and oil companies. But according to Advertising Age, this is about to change for pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. To win over public opinion, Glaxo... Continue Reading Posted at 3:01 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	J.P. Morgan Chase Plugged in Marketing Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 Commercial banking is a tough business. First of all, your customers probably don’t like you, and your prospects don’t really care about your me too offers, either. But if you are J. P. Morgan Chase, you are willing chase down... Continue Reading Posted at 2:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Advertisers Wary of MySpace Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 Unless you live under a rock, you already know that MySpace is hot social networking site for 20-somethings. Members create profiles, share photos, videos, music, gossip, and make connections. This sounds like a great place for advertisers to reach an... Continue Reading Posted at 2:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Boomers Age Gracefully but Quickly Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 If you are looking for a headline to grab attention, here’s one courtesy of Media Audit: Ten Thousand Boomers a Day Turn Fifty. But here is something even more amazing. Of these 51.1 million boomers age 50 and above, half... Continue Reading Posted at 8:29 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb21	Aromatic Packaging Competing for Your Attention Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Just when you thought grocery shopping was already complicated enough, you can soon expect another hassle. Aromatic packaging--that is--food packaging enhanced to smell like the product it contains. While the concept has merit, imagine an aisle of smelly packages, and... Continue Reading Posted at 1:08 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hasbro’s Stupid Product Placement Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves Hasbro games as much as the next pundit. Hasbro, owner of Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers, is beloved for Scrabble, Trivial Pursuit, Operation, Rubik’s Cube, Chutes and Ladders and More. But in an effort to win the... Continue Reading Posted at 9:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Real Men Play Cricket Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 The past few months have been kind to sports fans and advertisers. First, we all enjoyed the Super Bowl (the game, not the inane commercials.) Next, we’ve seen Olympic glory peppered with advertising from our dying auto industry. And, we... Continue Reading Posted at 8:24 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	ABC Television Junk Merchandise Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Let’s say that you are having a very slow day. So slow, that you decide to buy merchandise which appears on your favorite ABC television show. We’re talking stuff like: “Gabrielle's Yoga Pants, Martha Stewart Signature Couch (as seen in Bree's... Continue Reading Posted at 7:57 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Online Advertising Up 12% Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Marketing Blurb is not especially keen on television advertising. Commercials are expensive, and fragmented audiences aren’t watching anyway. But we are encouraged by numerous alternatives, including online advertising. According to Nielsen NetRatings AdRelevance, online display advertising increased 12% in January to... Continue Reading Posted at 7:36 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb20	Hello Kitty Going Global Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Invite a half-dozen marketing pundits for drinks one night, and ask them to name the most powerful international brand. Sure, you’ll hear Coke, Nike, and newcomers Google and Starbucks. But our choice purrs—Hello Kitty, the monster Japanese brand from Sanrio... Continue Reading Posted at 6:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Branding Dow Chemical Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Let’s say you are a brave advertising agency—very brave. Your job, should you be awarded the contract, is to re-brand Dow Chemical. Do not be concerned that the existing brand suffers from some excess baggage like Vietnam-era defoliant Agent Orange,... Continue Reading Posted at 6:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Disney Dumps Print Catalog and Goes Online Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 If you are in the business of mailing print catalogs, watch your back. Over the last few years, a number of leading print catalog merchants watched online sales cross the 50% of sales threshold. Others concede that online catalog sales... Continue Reading Posted at 5:15 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Buzz Marketing Ices Fruitcakes Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Let’s say that you are Cold Stone Creamery, an ice-cream maker and franchiser from Scottsdale, Arizona. You realize that world-of-mouth marketing is your strong suit, so how do you crank up the buzz? Well, you might try something novel like... Continue Reading Posted at 11:05 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb19	Pimped Honda Promotion Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 Marketing Blurb did not compete in the Olympic snowboarding competition this year. But if we had executed one of those monster 570s in the Half Pipe, we would have been listening to the Black-eyed Peas from the iPod sewn right... Continue Reading Posted at 11:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Coke and Bottlers Headed for Trouble Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 You might already know that Marketing Blurb prefers not to shop at Wal-Mart. However, we readily recognize and cannot challenge the fact, that Wal-Mart has the most efficient retail distribution system in the history of the universe. So it should not... Continue Reading Posted at 10:42 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	McDonald’s Menu and Receipts Go Uptown Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 Marketing Blurb has a bias. We do not eat at McDonald’s. We also firmly believe that those who do have absolute disregard for their diet and overall health. That said, it seems we may have been too harsh in our... Continue Reading Posted at 10:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb18	Mr. Clean Bathroom Explorer Rich Ottum February 18, 2006 Cleaning your bathroom is a pain. But fortunately, Marketing Blurb can help. No, we don’t actually do bathrooms, but we can point you to the Procter & Gamble Mr. Clean Bathroom Explorer. The BE is an interactive website to showcase... Continue Reading Posted at 2:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Jeep Rolling with Tony Hawk Rich Ottum February 18, 2006 Okay, boomers. If you don’t know Tony Hawk, just ask the neighborhood kids--if you can tear them away from the videogames. Tony Hawk is a real life skateboarder, a guy who performs stunts that would kill mere mortals like most... Continue Reading Posted at 1:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb17	Kellogg’s Bad Apple Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Gee—without much trouble, we could create an entire blog devoted to the trials and triumphs of Kellogg’s. The company is already in hot milk for advertising indiscretions with children. But the Kellogg’s ad agency, Leo Burnett USA, still can’t get... Continue Reading Posted at 1:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Digital Product Placement Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 You already know that product placement is the hot technique to expose your brand inside the story line of popular television and movies. But if you did not cut your product placement deal in time—don’t worry. Now you digitize in... Continue Reading Posted at 12:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	PPD to Replace GRPs Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Well, it’s time to rewrite the marketing textbooks again—or at least the chapter on Gross Rating Points. GRPs are the age-old measure of mass media penetration, a combination of reach and frequency. As you might expect, GRP is beginning to lose... Continue Reading Posted at 10:03 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Unexpected Wows at Wal-Mart Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 You know the Wal-Mart drill. First you enter a monster parking lot littered with shopping carts askew. Next, you are greeted by a friendly senior citizen. (Fortunately it is the sticky floor that smells bad, not the senior citizen.) Then... Continue Reading Posted at 9:06 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Going for the Gold—Brew that is Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Forget Olympic Gold and think a tall frosted glass of Miller beer. That’s what NASCAR fans over 18 years old are thinking about right now. Here’s the deal. If Miller-sponsored Kurt Busch takes the checkered flag in his No. 2... Continue Reading Posted at 8:21 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb16	Houston, we have a Pokemon Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Pokemon USA is preparing to celebrate its tenth anniversary from March 10 through May 14 at the Houston Space Center. Don’t ask Marketing Blurb why the Space Center is now a promotional venue, but fans of the pocket monster franchise... Continue Reading Posted at 6:42 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Olsen Twins Go Glamorous Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves glamour as much as the next pundit. But we’re usually just too busy to pay much attention to the designer fashion scene, until celebrities grab the headlines. This time it is the Olsen twins, who although they... Continue Reading Posted at 6:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NASCAR Dads Tune in Daytona 500 Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Politicians loved soccer moms, and then NASCAR dads. Well, advertisers love the NASCAR fans as well. The television audience for the sport has grow 80% over the last 15 years. The Daytona 500 kicks off the season this weekend. Last... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hipster and Elegant Babies Demand More Toys Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 2003 was not a good year for toymakers. Tickle me Elmo was already passé, Toys R Us and Target could not compete with Wal-Mart, and toy sales actually dropped 4% for the year. But according to the U.S. Market for Infant,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Ad Bunching Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves lingo more than rappers love bling. Today we discovered The Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required) coined the term “ad bunching.” The term describes the recent practice by advertisers to cluster or even dominate a given media... Continue Reading Posted at 7:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb15	Teen Sports Mags Pumping Iron Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Sure Sports Illustrated is grabbing all the headlines with their annual swimsuit issue, but according to Media Week, specialty independent publishers like SchoolSports and Stack and scoring with editorial targeting male high school athletes in major metro markets. Advertisers are... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Pamela Anderson No Go for the Roses Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 You already know you can count on Marketing Blurb for news of Pamela Anderson. Last month, we shared Pamela’s well-publicized animal cruelty protest targeting removal of the bust of KFC founder Colonel Harland Sanders from the Kentucky state Capitol. And... Continue Reading Posted at 11:28 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lexus Offers Branded Cell Phone App Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Now you may or may not be in the market for a Lexus these days. But you have certainly noticed that your Lexus-driving buddies have way-cooler cell phones than yours. Sure, you can take grainy pictures with your cell phone... Continue Reading Posted at 10:10 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Olympic Medal for Advertising Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Marketing Blurb alerted readers last month, that NBC was falling well short of required ad revenue to breakeven on broadcasting the Olympic Games. But the network, ever a contender, decided to go for the gold with a new record for... Continue Reading Posted at 9:20 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Tan, Rested, and Ready--Ken Returns for Barbie Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 It’s been two long years, since Ken and Barbie split. But face it, Ken was a dweeb, and easily booted out the door by Blaine, Barbie’s hip Australian surfer dude. Well, since then, Barbie’s stock has dropped considerably (both with... Continue Reading Posted at 9:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb14	Baskin-Robbins Love Potion No. 31 Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Here’s late breaking news from Promo Magazine we’re sorry we missed. Baskin-Robbins is offering free ice cream! But here’s the catch. You need to show up at one of their stores by today, dressed as cupid. Those who don convincing... Continue Reading Posted at 1:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Frosted Flakes a Healthy Diet for Kids? Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Gee, cereal is really in the news these days. It seems kids can’t watch television anymore without some advocacy group peering over their shoulders. And the same is true for children’s websites. It seems our friends in the cereal business... Continue Reading Posted at 9:13 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Extravaganza Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 The famous Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition is about to hit the newsstands. But over the years this popular page-turner has morphed into an outrageous franchise. According to The New York Times (free registration required) fans can also view the bikini... Continue Reading Posted at 8:15 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Joe Camel Raises a Hoof Anew? Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Perhaps you noticed, but Marketing Blurb only discussed Super Bowl advertising before the game. We decided to leave the post-game creative critique to more qualified pundits. In our simple subjective opinion, the advertising was lame at best. But one issue... Continue Reading Posted at 7:15 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Celebrity Endorsement Scores Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Marketing Blurb has already told you that using celebrity endorsements is a waste of money. But why listen to us, when you can get the scoop from Q Score a company known for measuring the value of celebrities actors, news... Continue Reading Posted at 7:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb13	KISS Me, Stupid! Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Remember, readers, we already warned you about Unforgivable, a new fragrance spawned in the passion of P. Diddy Combs. Well, if P.Diddy is not your style, you can still embarrass yourself with a new collection of KISS Cosmetics to be... Continue Reading Posted at 10:14 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Reaching the Wrong TV Audience Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Marketing Blurb has bad news and worse news. First the bad news--kids are watching more television these days. Now the worse news—kids are watching more television programming intended for adults. According to a report by Magna Global, kids aged 2-11... Continue Reading Posted at 9:22 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Searching for a Superior Marketing Solution? Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 As reported earlier by Marketing Blurb, companies are increasingly turning to online search to effectively reach certain challenging customer demographics like Gen Y. Ideally, this is a dual focused campaign consisting of search engine optimization (SEO) and keyword advertising, often... Continue Reading Posted at 8:53 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Czechs Weigh in on Television Advertising Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 In the interests of international diplomacy, Marketing Blurb believes readers will be interested to learn Czechs believe there is too much adverting on their private (not state-run) television networks. According to a survey by Factum Invenio, 80% of respondents said... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Oprah Winfrey on XM Satellite Radio Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Confession time again for Marketing Blurb—we do not watch Oprah Winfrey on television. Nor do we read her magazine, or read other magazine articles about her. And, we certainly do not intend to listen to Oprah on XM Satellite Radio,... Continue Reading Posted at 7:39 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb12	Kellogg’s Celebrates 100th Anniversary Rich Ottum February 12, 2006 Okay, folks. You know that Marketing Blurb has called Kellogg’s and other cereal companies on the carpet for advertising to children. But we decided to back off, for awhile anyway, because we just learned that February 19th is the 100th... Continue Reading Posted at 2:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Marketing to…well, Marketers Rich Ottum February 12, 2006 Let’s say you have sometime to sell to a fellow marketer. What is the best way to reach a marketer with your, umm, marketing pitch? Well, according to research from Three Deep Marketing and Marketing Sherpa, don’t call marketers on... Continue Reading Posted at 9:37 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb11	Mobile Marketing Madness Rich Ottum February 11, 2006 You already know that Marketing Blurb is not keen on mobile marketing. We realize mobile marketing is inevitable, we are just not enamored with annoying ring tones and small screens. But to keep our readers informed, we might as well... Continue Reading Posted at 8:50 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Tide Goes Deep and Personal Rich Ottum February 11, 2006 Marketing Blurb likes laundry as much as the next guy (which is not especially much.) Fortunately, however, Procter & Gamble cares deeply about laundry. So much in fact, that along with their advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, P&G executives spent... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb10	This is Your Brain on Commercials Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 You knew this had to happen. According to CNet News, researchers from the University of California at Los Angeles's Ahmanson Lovelace Brain Mapping Center and FKF Applied Research decided to scan the brains of those watching Super Bowl commercials to... Continue Reading Posted at 10:50 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Glad to Sponsor Mardi Gras Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 When I was a marketing graduate student, I remember my professor challenging the class to identify the ideal consumer product. We all postulated various real and imaginary ideas, but our professor interrupted with the correct answer. The ideal consumer product... Continue Reading Posted at 9:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Business Week Confirms Marketing Blurb Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Regular readers know that Marketing Blurb is not keen on celebrity endorsements. Business Week feels the same way we do, so you’ll want to read Don't Hide Behind Famous Faces Hitching your brand to a celebrity's star won't help you... Continue Reading Posted at 9:23 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	General Mills Soup Operas Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Just when a working woman decides her world is complicated enough, General Mills decided to add another distraction. GM subsidiary Progresso just launched a short-film website for its soup product line. The short web films called “soup operas” are targeted... Continue Reading Posted at 9:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Google Enters Print Advertising Arena Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Online industry pundits are convinced Google is posturing itself for world domination. And as they slowly squeeze Microsoft on multiple fronts, who knows what will happen. But for now, we do know that Google is expanding their online advertising capabilities... Continue Reading Posted at 7:34 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 9	Product Placement Discord Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Now you might think it is a good idea for Madison Avenue and Hollywood to confab on a regular basis. Advertising Age sponsors one such event, called Madison and Vine in Los Angeles. This year, members of the Screen Actors... Continue Reading Posted at 9:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	McDonald’s Unwraps New Packaging Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Marketing Blurb is still puzzled why the fast food industry is pretending to be health conscious. Beginning this month, and rolling out over this year, 20,000 McDonald’s Restaurants will unveil new packaging which includes product nutrition information. For example, before... Continue Reading Posted at 9:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Woman Share and Men Hoard Wine Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Marketing Blurb reminds readers regularly that women control the money in our economy. And when you’re ready for that glass of wine at the end of the day, 64% of wine consumers are women. As you might expect, women purchase... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Burton Snowboards Span Gen X and Y Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 The Olympic Games begin this week, and not everyone will be watching just downhill and ice skating. Gen X and Y viewers will tune into the snowboarding competition. The champion company of snowboarding in the US is Burton Snowboards of... Continue Reading Posted at 8:14 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Life Takes Visa? Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Now you might think that buying a tube of toothpaste is buying a tube of toothpaste. But not so, according to Carisa Binachi, president of ad agency giant TBWA/Chiat/Day —especially if you are using your Visa card. "Visa is not... Continue Reading Posted at 7:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 8	J.C. Penny Attempts Makeover Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Retailing is a tough business. It can take years for a retailer to establish a credible brand image or positioning in the marketplace, only to discover than image is suddenly passé. According to The Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required,)... Continue Reading Posted at 8:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Ad Guidelines for Kids due for Overhaul Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Someone should be responsible for policing what is advertised to your children, right? Well, there is an industry self-regulating organization called CARU, or the Children’s Advertising Review Unit. But the guidelines issued by CARU are now 30 years old, and... Continue Reading Posted at 8:16 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Wendy’s To Trial New Products Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Marketing Blurb is not a fast-food expert. But we do know the industry is suffering of late. For example, Wendy’s just experienced their first same-store sales loss in 18 years. Some of these wounds are self-inflicted. The burger industry launched... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Elle Magazine Goes Green Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Every now and then, companies feel somehow obligated or pressed to pay token respect to social responsibility in product development or marketing. This spring, that product is Elle Magazine. According to Women’s Wear Daily, the May issue will be printed... Continue Reading Posted at 7:39 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mobile Marketing on the Move Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Confession time—Marketing Blurb does not like the idea of mobile marketing. Cell phones are already a colossal pain without the introduction of advertising. But even without our blessing, you can expect this venue to explode. In fact, search marketing firm... Continue Reading Posted at 6:30 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 7	Hubcap Ads—Hail Me a Cab! Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 You knew this was coming. Taxi cabs already include advertising on their roofs and trunk decks, so why not use their hubcaps? While common in Europe and Asia, hubcap advertising is still relatively new in major US cities. The new... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Romancing the Brew Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Marketing Blurb will not mention brewers by name, but will boldly state that beer advertising (on commercial television anyway) is juvenile, sophomoric, and okay, generally insulting to anyone with an IQ larger than their waist size. But maybe this will... Continue Reading Posted at 8:10 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Krispy Kreme Sharing the Love Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Regular readers already know the saga of Krispy Kreme Donuts. But things are looking up for the besieged purveyor of the sugar rush—at least for Valentine’s Day. For the first time, Krispy Kreme is turning to television and radio advertising... Continue Reading Posted at 7:47 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Sage of Marketing Management Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves marketing more that the next guy—so much in fact, that we teach marketing as an Adjunct Faculty member for two universities. But long before Marketing Blurb was an instructor, we were a marketing student. And like all... Continue Reading Posted at 6:54 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Coke Gets Healthy—Sort Of Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 In our age of self-indulgence, social responsibility is struggling for a come-back. But this much is simple. Children and adults who drink too many soft-drinks risk obesity. This well-publicized news is not lost on Coca-Cola Company, which just launched a... Continue Reading Posted at 6:30 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 6	BMW Crashes on Google Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Oops! In a poorly executed stunt maneuver, automaker BMW crashed on Google. According to Adverblog (who in turn is quoting several search marketing pundits) BMW has been banished to the lowest ranks of Google results for deliberating trying to manipulate... Continue Reading Posted at 9:46 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hiz Honor Promotes FreshDirect Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 You know that Marketing Blurb is skeptical of celebrity endorsements. Celebrities always promote themselves, never your product. But celebrities play to the crowd, and if you want a crowd-pleaser, why not hire former NY city Mayor, Ed Koch to promote... Continue Reading Posted at 8:55 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Thank You from Red Envelope Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 e-Commerce merchant Red Envelope has a novel idea to promote their brand and encourage repeat purchases. If someone sends you a gift from Red Envelope, you can go to their website, and send the gift-giver a quality personalized thank you... Continue Reading Posted at 8:22 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Vocalpoint--New P&G Network for Moms Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Consumer products giant Procter & Gamble always strives to understand the pulse of their customers and prospects. P&G adopted word-of-mouth marketing years before their competitors. The prime example is Tremor, a network of influential teens who provide feedback and buzz... Continue Reading Posted at 8:07 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Teens Demand Authentic Marketing Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Dude, if you want to reach Gen Y teens these days, you’ve got to be, like, real. According to a 13 nation Teen Study by GenWorld, teens ignore marketing messages unless they are deemed authentic in voice and content. Teen... Continue Reading Posted at 7:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 5	Super Bowl Blog Buzz Rich Ottum February 5, 2006 Live television and radio coverage of the Super Bowl used to satisfy the fans, but this year, you can expect the addition of real-time bloggers and podcasters. Marketing Blurb promises not to blog during the game, but countless others will... Continue Reading Posted at 11:45 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 4	Curious George Mania Rich Ottum February 4, 2006 Get ready for Curious George mania. Next Friday, Universal Pictures is releasing Curious George, an animated movie based on the world-famous character of children’s literature since the 1940s. Universal Pictures holds the Curious George license, and the inquisitive monkey already... Continue Reading Posted at 6:47 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 3	Newspaper Advertising Follows Readers Online Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 There is considerable hand-wringing in the newspaper industry these days. The target reader demographic is aging; circulation and advertising revenues are dropping. Of course, a number of newspaper publishers have already taken action by beefing up their online editions, or... Continue Reading Posted at 9:25 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hold the Presses—It’s Go for Go Daddy Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 While Marketing Blurb hesitates to join the publicity frenzy here, domain registrar and Internet services provider Go Daddy just scored another touchdown. You already know that their controversial 2005 Super Bowl commercial was a monster hit. Well, for the point... Continue Reading Posted at 8:49 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Revamped Jane Magazine Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not want to give readers the wrong impression that we love only boomer women. In fact, we love twenty-something women, too! So we’re please to learn that Jane magazine announced a revamped editorial and advertising focus with... Continue Reading Posted at 8:16 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	iPod Nation Demographics Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not own an iPod. But we have held one, and even just touching an iPod is a sensual experience. We’re forced to admit that iPod owners are younger and trendier than we are. Neilsen Net Ratings has... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New TravelSmith Catalog for Boomer Women Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Regular readers know Marketing Blurb loves boomer women. Boomer women know what they want, are more brand conscious, and spend more money than there daughters, or their lunkhead son-in-laws. TravelSmith agrees, because they have decided to launch a new catalog... Continue Reading Posted at 7:08 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 2	Retail Time Shifting with Gift Cards Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 The 2005 holiday season is still in session. A diverse collection of merchants including Wal-Mart Stores, Target, Costco, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Nordstrom Inc. and J.C. Penney all reported increased same store sales increases over January last year. A number... Continue Reading Posted at 1:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	How to Spend $ 2.5 M on Advertising Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 You’ve probably heard somewhere that a 30 second commercial spot on the upcoming Super Bowl retails for $ 2.5 million. And if you’re like Marketing Blurb, you’ve wondered whether the big game is the best way to spend boffo ad... Continue Reading Posted at 11:51 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Gen Y Bypasses Traditional Auto Advertising Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 The auto industry is in a funk, as you know, and here is one of many reasons. According to the Southfield Michigan Business Journal, “traditional mass media has been rendered nearly obsolete among first-time vehicle buyers, according to a study... Continue Reading Posted at 9:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Home Depot Olympic Sweepstakes Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 Okay, all you arm-chair quarterbacks—fess up. Your secret dream is really not pro football—you’ve always wanted to complete in the Olympic Games. Well, if you’re not able to compete with Olympians, at least you can train with Olympians. And that... Continue Reading Posted at 8:40 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A Diamond for Valentine’s Day Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 About five years ago, the diamond industry realized that affluent single women were purchasing their own right-hand diamond rings. (After all, why wait for some lunkhead guy to figure out what you want?) The Diamond Trading Company launched a brilliant... Continue Reading Posted at 8:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 1	Yum Brands to Sponsor Kentucky Derby Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Maybe you never noticed, but the famed Kentucky Derby never had an advertising sponsor—until now. The derby just signed a five year sponsorship contract with Yum Brands, the parent company KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. In the future, the... Continue Reading Posted at 10:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Direct Marketing Under Siege Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Marketing Blurb is an equal opportunity pundit. We believe in covering all marketing avenues, (even though we secretly despise television, movie theatres, and mobile anything.) We are fond of print, point-of-sale, online, and direct marketing. But sometimes, a voice in... Continue Reading Posted at 9:11 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Search Engines Convert for E-Commerce Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Search marketing is turning the advertising industry upside down. While still a small portion of overall ad spending, the rate of increase is gaining dramatically every year. And as you might expect, search marketing is ideal for e-commerce. In fact,... Continue Reading Posted at 8:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Go Local for Product Placements Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Marketing Blurb recently told you about product placements, and as you might expect, it is placements on prime time television that make all the headlines. There is such a frenzy surrounding product placement these days that advertisers are running out... Continue Reading Posted at 7:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	POP Broadcasting Shelf Video Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Face it, shopping for groceries is a battle. Fortunately, the point-of-purchase experts of the industry have conditioned us to salivate on cue for end caps, dump displays and self talkers. But now the shelf talkers actually talk—and show you video... Continue Reading Posted at 6:58 AM \| Permalink \| Comments

« January 2006 | Main | March 2006 »

Feb28	Product Placement Exceeds Commercial Time Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Know More: Advertising Marketing Blurb has already alerted readers that product placement is huge. But how big is huge these days? Well according to Media Daily News, “nearly 11 percent of all programming minutes now include some sort of brand reference, and some shows now have more minutes of product placement time than they do TV commercial time.” Read that again slowly. In certain instances, product placements receive more air time than actual commercials! Specifically, the CBS show King of Queens has an average of 18 minutes and 13 seconds of branded content per hour equivalent vs. only 16 minutes and 49 seconds of commercial time. But wait, this gets better (or worse depending on your point of view.) The Apprentice: Martha Stewart, on NBC, has an average of 33 minutes and 51 seconds of branded content per hour vs. only 16 minutes and 32 seconds of commercial time. Some many ponder whether product placement is out of control. Of course, Marketing Blurb knows better—Martha Stewart is out of control. Posted at 6:45 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb28	Word of Mouth on Steroids Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Buzz is hot. Marketers have always understood the power of word-of-mouth, but it has only been recently, that WOM marketing has achieved the status of a discipline. And while this discipline is still young, WOM pundits are evangelizing business to... Continue Reading Posted at 6:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Heed Boomer Credos Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Marketing Blurb always cautions that demographic and psychographic profiling are never as effective as behavioral analysis. In other words, marketers cannot assume all Gen Y consumers are similar. Instead, marketers must observe actual human behavior for clues to appropriate marketing... Continue Reading Posted at 5:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	March Madness Free Online Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 It’s that time of year again, when countless workplaces across the nation are gearing up for college basketball March Madness. Workers who never even follow the game will reluctantly pitch dollars into the office betting pool, while fanatics will trade... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mars CocoaVia Chocolate Rich Ottum February 28, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves chocolate more than the next pundit. Fortunately, recent health studies have confirmed what chocolate-lovers already know, that chocolate is good for you. Chocolate and coffee help build strong bodies 8 ways. (If you recognize that advertising slogan... Continue Reading Posted at 7:56 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb27	Do Real Men Drive Chick Cars? Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb has already explained that women buy more cars (and trucks) than men. So don’t believe automobile manufacturers that car designs must be gender-specific. But if you do decide to convene a focus group of real men, they will... Continue Reading Posted at 1:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	TiVo Ponders Free Boxes Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb cannot find much programming on television worth watching, so the idea that we might actually record something is ludicrous. However, when teaching marketing to adult learners, we discovered that many folks would rather sell their spouse into slavery... Continue Reading Posted at 8:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Elevator Advertising Reach Tops The Wall Street Journal Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not frequent many high rise office buildings. (Our clients prefer back alleys.) But if we did, we would have noticed that elevator advertising is on the rise. In fact, media network Captivate (clever name, huh?) which places... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Microsoft Tops Free Media Metrics Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Regardless of the results, advertising, promotion and public relations are always a hassle. So you might as well garner all the free media mentions you can. In 2005, for example, Microsoft emerged as the leader with 53 billion free impressions from... Continue Reading Posted at 8:18 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mobizzo Mobile Storefront Rich Ottum February 27, 2006 Cell phones are annoying enough as it is, but since you must have one, you might as well install mindless celebrity screensavers and pop tune ring tones. But if you really want to go crazy, get ready to sign up... Continue Reading Posted at 7:03 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb25	Save H&R Block Contest Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Okay, you don’t need Marketing Blurb to tell you the well-publicized news that H&R screwed up their own corporate tax return to the tune of $ 32 million. We will leave that story and the fallout to financial pundits. Instead,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Good Help is Easy to Find Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Retail shopping is a pain. For example, you can’t even walk into an appliance or electronics store to buy a television any more. Televisions no longer exist. You are expected to know whether you want high-definition, plasma, LCD, projection, tube,... Continue Reading Posted at 12:10 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Dress Like Nicky Hilton Rich Ottum February 25, 2006 Marketing Blurb is fashion challenged. We often wear our ratty old two-button blue blazer with a yellow pocket silk, and don’t much give a damn about what people think. But ideally, our girlfriend should dress like Nicky Hilton. Fortunately, Nicky... Continue Reading Posted at 10:52 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb24	Get Your Hanes on This Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 With a brand name like Hanes, you cannot resist the temptation to maximize this play on words—Look who we have our Hanes on now. And so it goes for a Hanes advertising campaign featuring Kevin Bacon and Christina Applegate. The... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New York Comic-Con Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 This weekend is New York Comic-Con. Marketing Blurb wishes we could attend, but we moved away from NY ages ago. And Mom sold all our comics in a garage sale. (Whoever purchased those back in about 1971 retired early and... Continue Reading Posted at 3:16 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	iTunes Billion Song Countdown Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Geez, Marketing Blurb really feels humiliated, because we didn’t even know about the iTunes Music Store Billion Songs Countdown. Okay, so we don’t own an iPod—but can't we just pretend, anyway? Well, if we had been paying attention (and if... Continue Reading Posted at 2:08 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Affluent Women to Watch The Oscars Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Okay, confession time again for Marketing Blurb. We don’t go to the movies. Now don’t get us wrong—we love movies as much as the next pundit. But we do not like movie theatres and movie theatre patrons. Our conventional 27... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mail Guys versus Phone Guys Rich Ottum February 24, 2006 Marketing Blurb already warned direct mail marketers to get ready for “do not mail” legislation. Well, the subject is still simmering, and the Direct Marketing Association, DMA, has decided to join a “coalition spearheaded by the Association for Postal Commerce... Continue Reading Posted at 10:33 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb23	Olympic Tin on Madison Avenue Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Like sports fans everywhere, Madison Avenue follows the Olympic Games too—looking for that next superstar to hawk cereal, shoes, clothes, cars, and whatever. But according to The New York Times (free registration required,) no US superstars have emerged from the... Continue Reading Posted at 3:11 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Why Office Productivity is Slumping Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Marketing Blurb already told you about Soup Opera, an attempt by Progresso to engage working women during their lunch break. Well, according to our friends at The New York Post (yes we have friends everywhere—but free registration required,) you ain’t... Continue Reading Posted at 2:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Starbucks to Challenge Dunkin Donuts at Stop & Shop Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Marketing Blurb believes the best way to muck up a retail concept is to open a so-called store-within-a-store. Yes, the practice is common, and yes, the practice is dumb. For example, the only way to make a McDonald's less appealing... Continue Reading Posted at 1:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Single Serve Banana Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 At least once every day, Marketing Blurb encounters a Press Release, News Headline, or Blog Posting that makes no sense at all. (Okay, maybe we are guilty of publishing a few such items ourselves.) But in any event, I just... Continue Reading Posted at 1:00 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	KFC Slow Motion Gambit Rich Ottum February 23, 2006 Now you might think that some people ignore television commercials, or certainly zap them if they record television programming. You would be right, naturally. So if Kentucky Fried Chicken wants you to actually watch the new commercial for their new... Continue Reading Posted at 12:46 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb22	GlaxoSmithKline Public Relations Disaster? Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 You are probably not surprise to learn that drug manufacturers enjoy a consumer reputation just above tobacco and oil companies. But according to Advertising Age, this is about to change for pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. To win over public opinion, Glaxo... Continue Reading Posted at 3:01 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	J.P. Morgan Chase Plugged in Marketing Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 Commercial banking is a tough business. First of all, your customers probably don’t like you, and your prospects don’t really care about your me too offers, either. But if you are J. P. Morgan Chase, you are willing chase down... Continue Reading Posted at 2:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Advertisers Wary of MySpace Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 Unless you live under a rock, you already know that MySpace is hot social networking site for 20-somethings. Members create profiles, share photos, videos, music, gossip, and make connections. This sounds like a great place for advertisers to reach an... Continue Reading Posted at 2:19 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Boomers Age Gracefully but Quickly Rich Ottum February 22, 2006 If you are looking for a headline to grab attention, here’s one courtesy of Media Audit: Ten Thousand Boomers a Day Turn Fifty. But here is something even more amazing. Of these 51.1 million boomers age 50 and above, half... Continue Reading Posted at 8:29 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb21	Aromatic Packaging Competing for Your Attention Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Just when you thought grocery shopping was already complicated enough, you can soon expect another hassle. Aromatic packaging--that is--food packaging enhanced to smell like the product it contains. While the concept has merit, imagine an aisle of smelly packages, and... Continue Reading Posted at 1:08 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hasbro’s Stupid Product Placement Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves Hasbro games as much as the next pundit. Hasbro, owner of Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers, is beloved for Scrabble, Trivial Pursuit, Operation, Rubik’s Cube, Chutes and Ladders and More. But in an effort to win the... Continue Reading Posted at 9:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Real Men Play Cricket Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 The past few months have been kind to sports fans and advertisers. First, we all enjoyed the Super Bowl (the game, not the inane commercials.) Next, we’ve seen Olympic glory peppered with advertising from our dying auto industry. And, we... Continue Reading Posted at 8:24 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	ABC Television Junk Merchandise Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Let’s say that you are having a very slow day. So slow, that you decide to buy merchandise which appears on your favorite ABC television show. We’re talking stuff like: “Gabrielle's Yoga Pants, Martha Stewart Signature Couch (as seen in Bree's... Continue Reading Posted at 7:57 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Online Advertising Up 12% Rich Ottum February 21, 2006 Marketing Blurb is not especially keen on television advertising. Commercials are expensive, and fragmented audiences aren’t watching anyway. But we are encouraged by numerous alternatives, including online advertising. According to Nielsen NetRatings AdRelevance, online display advertising increased 12% in January to... Continue Reading Posted at 7:36 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb20	Hello Kitty Going Global Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Invite a half-dozen marketing pundits for drinks one night, and ask them to name the most powerful international brand. Sure, you’ll hear Coke, Nike, and newcomers Google and Starbucks. But our choice purrs—Hello Kitty, the monster Japanese brand from Sanrio... Continue Reading Posted at 6:56 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Branding Dow Chemical Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Let’s say you are a brave advertising agency—very brave. Your job, should you be awarded the contract, is to re-brand Dow Chemical. Do not be concerned that the existing brand suffers from some excess baggage like Vietnam-era defoliant Agent Orange,... Continue Reading Posted at 6:21 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Disney Dumps Print Catalog and Goes Online Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 If you are in the business of mailing print catalogs, watch your back. Over the last few years, a number of leading print catalog merchants watched online sales cross the 50% of sales threshold. Others concede that online catalog sales... Continue Reading Posted at 5:15 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Buzz Marketing Ices Fruitcakes Rich Ottum February 20, 2006 Let’s say that you are Cold Stone Creamery, an ice-cream maker and franchiser from Scottsdale, Arizona. You realize that world-of-mouth marketing is your strong suit, so how do you crank up the buzz? Well, you might try something novel like... Continue Reading Posted at 11:05 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb19	Pimped Honda Promotion Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 Marketing Blurb did not compete in the Olympic snowboarding competition this year. But if we had executed one of those monster 570s in the Half Pipe, we would have been listening to the Black-eyed Peas from the iPod sewn right... Continue Reading Posted at 11:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Coke and Bottlers Headed for Trouble Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 You might already know that Marketing Blurb prefers not to shop at Wal-Mart. However, we readily recognize and cannot challenge the fact, that Wal-Mart has the most efficient retail distribution system in the history of the universe. So it should not... Continue Reading Posted at 10:42 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	McDonald’s Menu and Receipts Go Uptown Rich Ottum February 19, 2006 Marketing Blurb has a bias. We do not eat at McDonald’s. We also firmly believe that those who do have absolute disregard for their diet and overall health. That said, it seems we may have been too harsh in our... Continue Reading Posted at 10:09 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb18	Mr. Clean Bathroom Explorer Rich Ottum February 18, 2006 Cleaning your bathroom is a pain. But fortunately, Marketing Blurb can help. No, we don’t actually do bathrooms, but we can point you to the Procter & Gamble Mr. Clean Bathroom Explorer. The BE is an interactive website to showcase... Continue Reading Posted at 2:32 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Jeep Rolling with Tony Hawk Rich Ottum February 18, 2006 Okay, boomers. If you don’t know Tony Hawk, just ask the neighborhood kids--if you can tear them away from the videogames. Tony Hawk is a real life skateboarder, a guy who performs stunts that would kill mere mortals like most... Continue Reading Posted at 1:35 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb17	Kellogg’s Bad Apple Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Gee—without much trouble, we could create an entire blog devoted to the trials and triumphs of Kellogg’s. The company is already in hot milk for advertising indiscretions with children. But the Kellogg’s ad agency, Leo Burnett USA, still can’t get... Continue Reading Posted at 1:36 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Digital Product Placement Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 You already know that product placement is the hot technique to expose your brand inside the story line of popular television and movies. But if you did not cut your product placement deal in time—don’t worry. Now you digitize in... Continue Reading Posted at 12:25 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	PPD to Replace GRPs Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Well, it’s time to rewrite the marketing textbooks again—or at least the chapter on Gross Rating Points. GRPs are the age-old measure of mass media penetration, a combination of reach and frequency. As you might expect, GRP is beginning to lose... Continue Reading Posted at 10:03 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Unexpected Wows at Wal-Mart Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 You know the Wal-Mart drill. First you enter a monster parking lot littered with shopping carts askew. Next, you are greeted by a friendly senior citizen. (Fortunately it is the sticky floor that smells bad, not the senior citizen.) Then... Continue Reading Posted at 9:06 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Going for the Gold—Brew that is Rich Ottum February 17, 2006 Forget Olympic Gold and think a tall frosted glass of Miller beer. That’s what NASCAR fans over 18 years old are thinking about right now. Here’s the deal. If Miller-sponsored Kurt Busch takes the checkered flag in his No. 2... Continue Reading Posted at 8:21 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb16	Houston, we have a Pokemon Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Pokemon USA is preparing to celebrate its tenth anniversary from March 10 through May 14 at the Houston Space Center. Don’t ask Marketing Blurb why the Space Center is now a promotional venue, but fans of the pocket monster franchise... Continue Reading Posted at 6:42 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Olsen Twins Go Glamorous Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves glamour as much as the next pundit. But we’re usually just too busy to pay much attention to the designer fashion scene, until celebrities grab the headlines. This time it is the Olsen twins, who although they... Continue Reading Posted at 6:13 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NASCAR Dads Tune in Daytona 500 Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Politicians loved soccer moms, and then NASCAR dads. Well, advertisers love the NASCAR fans as well. The television audience for the sport has grow 80% over the last 15 years. The Daytona 500 kicks off the season this weekend. Last... Continue Reading Posted at 1:57 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hipster and Elegant Babies Demand More Toys Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 2003 was not a good year for toymakers. Tickle me Elmo was already passé, Toys R Us and Target could not compete with Wal-Mart, and toy sales actually dropped 4% for the year. But according to the U.S. Market for Infant,... Continue Reading Posted at 1:40 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Ad Bunching Rich Ottum February 16, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves lingo more than rappers love bling. Today we discovered The Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required) coined the term “ad bunching.” The term describes the recent practice by advertisers to cluster or even dominate a given media... Continue Reading Posted at 7:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb15	Teen Sports Mags Pumping Iron Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Sure Sports Illustrated is grabbing all the headlines with their annual swimsuit issue, but according to Media Week, specialty independent publishers like SchoolSports and Stack and scoring with editorial targeting male high school athletes in major metro markets. Advertisers are... Continue Reading Posted at 1:04 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Pamela Anderson No Go for the Roses Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 You already know you can count on Marketing Blurb for news of Pamela Anderson. Last month, we shared Pamela’s well-publicized animal cruelty protest targeting removal of the bust of KFC founder Colonel Harland Sanders from the Kentucky state Capitol. And... Continue Reading Posted at 11:28 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Lexus Offers Branded Cell Phone App Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Now you may or may not be in the market for a Lexus these days. But you have certainly noticed that your Lexus-driving buddies have way-cooler cell phones than yours. Sure, you can take grainy pictures with your cell phone... Continue Reading Posted at 10:10 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	NBC Olympic Medal for Advertising Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 Marketing Blurb alerted readers last month, that NBC was falling well short of required ad revenue to breakeven on broadcasting the Olympic Games. But the network, ever a contender, decided to go for the gold with a new record for... Continue Reading Posted at 9:20 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Tan, Rested, and Ready--Ken Returns for Barbie Rich Ottum February 15, 2006 It’s been two long years, since Ken and Barbie split. But face it, Ken was a dweeb, and easily booted out the door by Blaine, Barbie’s hip Australian surfer dude. Well, since then, Barbie’s stock has dropped considerably (both with... Continue Reading Posted at 9:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb14	Baskin-Robbins Love Potion No. 31 Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Here’s late breaking news from Promo Magazine we’re sorry we missed. Baskin-Robbins is offering free ice cream! But here’s the catch. You need to show up at one of their stores by today, dressed as cupid. Those who don convincing... Continue Reading Posted at 1:50 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Frosted Flakes a Healthy Diet for Kids? Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Gee, cereal is really in the news these days. It seems kids can’t watch television anymore without some advocacy group peering over their shoulders. And the same is true for children’s websites. It seems our friends in the cereal business... Continue Reading Posted at 9:13 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Extravaganza Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 The famous Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition is about to hit the newsstands. But over the years this popular page-turner has morphed into an outrageous franchise. According to The New York Times (free registration required) fans can also view the bikini... Continue Reading Posted at 8:15 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Joe Camel Raises a Hoof Anew? Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Perhaps you noticed, but Marketing Blurb only discussed Super Bowl advertising before the game. We decided to leave the post-game creative critique to more qualified pundits. In our simple subjective opinion, the advertising was lame at best. But one issue... Continue Reading Posted at 7:15 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Celebrity Endorsement Scores Rich Ottum February 14, 2006 Marketing Blurb has already told you that using celebrity endorsements is a waste of money. But why listen to us, when you can get the scoop from Q Score a company known for measuring the value of celebrities actors, news... Continue Reading Posted at 7:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb13	KISS Me, Stupid! Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Remember, readers, we already warned you about Unforgivable, a new fragrance spawned in the passion of P. Diddy Combs. Well, if P.Diddy is not your style, you can still embarrass yourself with a new collection of KISS Cosmetics to be... Continue Reading Posted at 10:14 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Reaching the Wrong TV Audience Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Marketing Blurb has bad news and worse news. First the bad news--kids are watching more television these days. Now the worse news—kids are watching more television programming intended for adults. According to a report by Magna Global, kids aged 2-11... Continue Reading Posted at 9:22 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Searching for a Superior Marketing Solution? Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 As reported earlier by Marketing Blurb, companies are increasingly turning to online search to effectively reach certain challenging customer demographics like Gen Y. Ideally, this is a dual focused campaign consisting of search engine optimization (SEO) and keyword advertising, often... Continue Reading Posted at 8:53 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Czechs Weigh in on Television Advertising Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 In the interests of international diplomacy, Marketing Blurb believes readers will be interested to learn Czechs believe there is too much adverting on their private (not state-run) television networks. According to a survey by Factum Invenio, 80% of respondents said... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Oprah Winfrey on XM Satellite Radio Rich Ottum February 13, 2006 Confession time again for Marketing Blurb—we do not watch Oprah Winfrey on television. Nor do we read her magazine, or read other magazine articles about her. And, we certainly do not intend to listen to Oprah on XM Satellite Radio,... Continue Reading Posted at 7:39 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb12	Kellogg’s Celebrates 100th Anniversary Rich Ottum February 12, 2006 Okay, folks. You know that Marketing Blurb has called Kellogg’s and other cereal companies on the carpet for advertising to children. But we decided to back off, for awhile anyway, because we just learned that February 19th is the 100th... Continue Reading Posted at 2:14 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Marketing to…well, Marketers Rich Ottum February 12, 2006 Let’s say you have sometime to sell to a fellow marketer. What is the best way to reach a marketer with your, umm, marketing pitch? Well, according to research from Three Deep Marketing and Marketing Sherpa, don’t call marketers on... Continue Reading Posted at 9:37 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb11	Mobile Marketing Madness Rich Ottum February 11, 2006 You already know that Marketing Blurb is not keen on mobile marketing. We realize mobile marketing is inevitable, we are just not enamored with annoying ring tones and small screens. But to keep our readers informed, we might as well... Continue Reading Posted at 8:50 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Tide Goes Deep and Personal Rich Ottum February 11, 2006 Marketing Blurb likes laundry as much as the next guy (which is not especially much.) Fortunately, however, Procter & Gamble cares deeply about laundry. So much in fact, that along with their advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, P&G executives spent... Continue Reading Posted at 8:26 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb10	This is Your Brain on Commercials Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 You knew this had to happen. According to CNet News, researchers from the University of California at Los Angeles's Ahmanson Lovelace Brain Mapping Center and FKF Applied Research decided to scan the brains of those watching Super Bowl commercials to... Continue Reading Posted at 10:50 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Glad to Sponsor Mardi Gras Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 When I was a marketing graduate student, I remember my professor challenging the class to identify the ideal consumer product. We all postulated various real and imaginary ideas, but our professor interrupted with the correct answer. The ideal consumer product... Continue Reading Posted at 9:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Business Week Confirms Marketing Blurb Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Regular readers know that Marketing Blurb is not keen on celebrity endorsements. Business Week feels the same way we do, so you’ll want to read Don't Hide Behind Famous Faces Hitching your brand to a celebrity's star won't help you... Continue Reading Posted at 9:23 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	General Mills Soup Operas Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Just when a working woman decides her world is complicated enough, General Mills decided to add another distraction. GM subsidiary Progresso just launched a short-film website for its soup product line. The short web films called “soup operas” are targeted... Continue Reading Posted at 9:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Google Enters Print Advertising Arena Rich Ottum February 10, 2006 Online industry pundits are convinced Google is posturing itself for world domination. And as they slowly squeeze Microsoft on multiple fronts, who knows what will happen. But for now, we do know that Google is expanding their online advertising capabilities... Continue Reading Posted at 7:34 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 9	Product Placement Discord Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Now you might think it is a good idea for Madison Avenue and Hollywood to confab on a regular basis. Advertising Age sponsors one such event, called Madison and Vine in Los Angeles. This year, members of the Screen Actors... Continue Reading Posted at 9:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	McDonald’s Unwraps New Packaging Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Marketing Blurb is still puzzled why the fast food industry is pretending to be health conscious. Beginning this month, and rolling out over this year, 20,000 McDonald’s Restaurants will unveil new packaging which includes product nutrition information. For example, before... Continue Reading Posted at 9:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Woman Share and Men Hoard Wine Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Marketing Blurb reminds readers regularly that women control the money in our economy. And when you’re ready for that glass of wine at the end of the day, 64% of wine consumers are women. As you might expect, women purchase... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Burton Snowboards Span Gen X and Y Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 The Olympic Games begin this week, and not everyone will be watching just downhill and ice skating. Gen X and Y viewers will tune into the snowboarding competition. The champion company of snowboarding in the US is Burton Snowboards of... Continue Reading Posted at 8:14 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Life Takes Visa? Rich Ottum February 9, 2006 Now you might think that buying a tube of toothpaste is buying a tube of toothpaste. But not so, according to Carisa Binachi, president of ad agency giant TBWA/Chiat/Day —especially if you are using your Visa card. "Visa is not... Continue Reading Posted at 7:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 8	J.C. Penny Attempts Makeover Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Retailing is a tough business. It can take years for a retailer to establish a credible brand image or positioning in the marketplace, only to discover than image is suddenly passé. According to The Wall Street Journal (paid subscription required,)... Continue Reading Posted at 8:41 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Ad Guidelines for Kids due for Overhaul Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Someone should be responsible for policing what is advertised to your children, right? Well, there is an industry self-regulating organization called CARU, or the Children’s Advertising Review Unit. But the guidelines issued by CARU are now 30 years old, and... Continue Reading Posted at 8:16 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Wendy’s To Trial New Products Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Marketing Blurb is not a fast-food expert. But we do know the industry is suffering of late. For example, Wendy’s just experienced their first same-store sales loss in 18 years. Some of these wounds are self-inflicted. The burger industry launched... Continue Reading Posted at 7:59 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Elle Magazine Goes Green Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Every now and then, companies feel somehow obligated or pressed to pay token respect to social responsibility in product development or marketing. This spring, that product is Elle Magazine. According to Women’s Wear Daily, the May issue will be printed... Continue Reading Posted at 7:39 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Mobile Marketing on the Move Rich Ottum February 8, 2006 Confession time—Marketing Blurb does not like the idea of mobile marketing. Cell phones are already a colossal pain without the introduction of advertising. But even without our blessing, you can expect this venue to explode. In fact, search marketing firm... Continue Reading Posted at 6:30 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 7	Hubcap Ads—Hail Me a Cab! Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 You knew this was coming. Taxi cabs already include advertising on their roofs and trunk decks, so why not use their hubcaps? While common in Europe and Asia, hubcap advertising is still relatively new in major US cities. The new... Continue Reading Posted at 8:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Romancing the Brew Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Marketing Blurb will not mention brewers by name, but will boldly state that beer advertising (on commercial television anyway) is juvenile, sophomoric, and okay, generally insulting to anyone with an IQ larger than their waist size. But maybe this will... Continue Reading Posted at 8:10 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Krispy Kreme Sharing the Love Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Regular readers already know the saga of Krispy Kreme Donuts. But things are looking up for the besieged purveyor of the sugar rush—at least for Valentine’s Day. For the first time, Krispy Kreme is turning to television and radio advertising... Continue Reading Posted at 7:47 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	The Sage of Marketing Management Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 Marketing Blurb loves marketing more that the next guy—so much in fact, that we teach marketing as an Adjunct Faculty member for two universities. But long before Marketing Blurb was an instructor, we were a marketing student. And like all... Continue Reading Posted at 6:54 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Coke Gets Healthy—Sort Of Rich Ottum February 7, 2006 In our age of self-indulgence, social responsibility is struggling for a come-back. But this much is simple. Children and adults who drink too many soft-drinks risk obesity. This well-publicized news is not lost on Coca-Cola Company, which just launched a... Continue Reading Posted at 6:30 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 6	BMW Crashes on Google Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Oops! In a poorly executed stunt maneuver, automaker BMW crashed on Google. According to Adverblog (who in turn is quoting several search marketing pundits) BMW has been banished to the lowest ranks of Google results for deliberating trying to manipulate... Continue Reading Posted at 9:46 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hiz Honor Promotes FreshDirect Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 You know that Marketing Blurb is skeptical of celebrity endorsements. Celebrities always promote themselves, never your product. But celebrities play to the crowd, and if you want a crowd-pleaser, why not hire former NY city Mayor, Ed Koch to promote... Continue Reading Posted at 8:55 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Thank You from Red Envelope Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 e-Commerce merchant Red Envelope has a novel idea to promote their brand and encourage repeat purchases. If someone sends you a gift from Red Envelope, you can go to their website, and send the gift-giver a quality personalized thank you... Continue Reading Posted at 8:22 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Vocalpoint--New P&G Network for Moms Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Consumer products giant Procter & Gamble always strives to understand the pulse of their customers and prospects. P&G adopted word-of-mouth marketing years before their competitors. The prime example is Tremor, a network of influential teens who provide feedback and buzz... Continue Reading Posted at 8:07 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Teens Demand Authentic Marketing Rich Ottum February 6, 2006 Dude, if you want to reach Gen Y teens these days, you’ve got to be, like, real. According to a 13 nation Teen Study by GenWorld, teens ignore marketing messages unless they are deemed authentic in voice and content. Teen... Continue Reading Posted at 7:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 5	Super Bowl Blog Buzz Rich Ottum February 5, 2006 Live television and radio coverage of the Super Bowl used to satisfy the fans, but this year, you can expect the addition of real-time bloggers and podcasters. Marketing Blurb promises not to blog during the game, but countless others will... Continue Reading Posted at 11:45 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 4	Curious George Mania Rich Ottum February 4, 2006 Get ready for Curious George mania. Next Friday, Universal Pictures is releasing Curious George, an animated movie based on the world-famous character of children’s literature since the 1940s. Universal Pictures holds the Curious George license, and the inquisitive monkey already... Continue Reading Posted at 6:47 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 3	Newspaper Advertising Follows Readers Online Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 There is considerable hand-wringing in the newspaper industry these days. The target reader demographic is aging; circulation and advertising revenues are dropping. Of course, a number of newspaper publishers have already taken action by beefing up their online editions, or... Continue Reading Posted at 9:25 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Hold the Presses—It’s Go for Go Daddy Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 While Marketing Blurb hesitates to join the publicity frenzy here, domain registrar and Internet services provider Go Daddy just scored another touchdown. You already know that their controversial 2005 Super Bowl commercial was a monster hit. Well, for the point... Continue Reading Posted at 8:49 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Revamped Jane Magazine Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not want to give readers the wrong impression that we love only boomer women. In fact, we love twenty-something women, too! So we’re please to learn that Jane magazine announced a revamped editorial and advertising focus with... Continue Reading Posted at 8:16 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	iPod Nation Demographics Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Marketing Blurb does not own an iPod. But we have held one, and even just touching an iPod is a sensual experience. We’re forced to admit that iPod owners are younger and trendier than we are. Neilsen Net Ratings has... Continue Reading Posted at 7:33 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	New TravelSmith Catalog for Boomer Women Rich Ottum February 3, 2006 Regular readers know Marketing Blurb loves boomer women. Boomer women know what they want, are more brand conscious, and spend more money than there daughters, or their lunkhead son-in-laws. TravelSmith agrees, because they have decided to launch a new catalog... Continue Reading Posted at 7:08 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 2	Retail Time Shifting with Gift Cards Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 The 2005 holiday season is still in session. A diverse collection of merchants including Wal-Mart Stores, Target, Costco, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Nordstrom Inc. and J.C. Penney all reported increased same store sales increases over January last year. A number... Continue Reading Posted at 1:07 PM \| Permalink \| Comments
	How to Spend $ 2.5 M on Advertising Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 You’ve probably heard somewhere that a 30 second commercial spot on the upcoming Super Bowl retails for $ 2.5 million. And if you’re like Marketing Blurb, you’ve wondered whether the big game is the best way to spend boffo ad... Continue Reading Posted at 11:51 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Gen Y Bypasses Traditional Auto Advertising Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 The auto industry is in a funk, as you know, and here is one of many reasons. According to the Southfield Michigan Business Journal, “traditional mass media has been rendered nearly obsolete among first-time vehicle buyers, according to a study... Continue Reading Posted at 9:43 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Home Depot Olympic Sweepstakes Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 Okay, all you arm-chair quarterbacks—fess up. Your secret dream is really not pro football—you’ve always wanted to complete in the Olympic Games. Well, if you’re not able to compete with Olympians, at least you can train with Olympians. And that... Continue Reading Posted at 8:40 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	A Diamond for Valentine’s Day Rich Ottum February 2, 2006 About five years ago, the diamond industry realized that affluent single women were purchasing their own right-hand diamond rings. (After all, why wait for some lunkhead guy to figure out what you want?) The Diamond Trading Company launched a brilliant... Continue Reading Posted at 8:01 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
Feb 1	Yum Brands to Sponsor Kentucky Derby Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Maybe you never noticed, but the famed Kentucky Derby never had an advertising sponsor—until now. The derby just signed a five year sponsorship contract with Yum Brands, the parent company KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. In the future, the... Continue Reading Posted at 10:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Direct Marketing Under Siege Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Marketing Blurb is an equal opportunity pundit. We believe in covering all marketing avenues, (even though we secretly despise television, movie theatres, and mobile anything.) We are fond of print, point-of-sale, online, and direct marketing. But sometimes, a voice in... Continue Reading Posted at 9:11 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Search Engines Convert for E-Commerce Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Search marketing is turning the advertising industry upside down. While still a small portion of overall ad spending, the rate of increase is gaining dramatically every year. And as you might expect, search marketing is ideal for e-commerce. In fact,... Continue Reading Posted at 8:02 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	Go Local for Product Placements Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Marketing Blurb recently told you about product placements, and as you might expect, it is placements on prime time television that make all the headlines. There is such a frenzy surrounding product placement these days that advertisers are running out... Continue Reading Posted at 7:38 AM \| Permalink \| Comments
	POP Broadcasting Shelf Video Rich Ottum February 1, 2006 Face it, shopping for groceries is a battle. Fortunately, the point-of-purchase experts of the industry have conditioned us to salivate on cue for end caps, dump displays and self talkers. But now the shelf talkers actually talk—and show you video... Continue Reading Posted at 6:58 AM \| Permalink \| Comments

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