I'm not saying this is the solution, but I am proposing that it's a step in the right direction.  What can we as advertisers do to earn the attention of unaware consumers: offer up an experience that will literally stop them swiftly in thier tracks.

This needs a bit more branding, and obviously the physics could be smoothed out (seems a bit glitchy when there's nothing in front of it) but I'll be damned if this isn't an amazing way to get someone's attention. 

The next step would be to make the screen touch sensitive to allow for further interaction.  If users could find out more information about the product, send info to thier cell phone or social networks, who knows what the future of streetside shopping may become.

People don't buy products or product attributes.  People buy:

Freedom from fear.

Freedom from hassle.

Freedom from boredom.

Feeling of self-worth.

Esteem from others.

Hope.

Pleasure.

Peace-of-mind.

Affection.

Family togetherness.

Recognition.

In 2011, it's not about pushing a product, it's about becoming a better salesman.

*Courtesy of Wally Ambruster - a salesman.

Last week I was able to attend a presentation on Belief Dynamics from a man by the name of Jack Bruemmer, the Executive Vice President of D’Arcy (1959-1995), one of the most famous STL ad firms from the Golden era that now makes up a good portion of Leo Burnett.

In the presentation, he discussed the following:

“Strategy, what we do before we create ads, is more important, interesting, and is worthy of more attention than we've been giving it.”

As for belief dynamics, it can kinda be labeled as the following: a clear, useful philosophy of how advertising works and a discipline to make it happen.

Belief Dynamics provides a better way to understand the consumer.  It helps to avoid false starts and wasted creative efforts.  It helps to create advertising that influences consumer behavior.  At the heart of belief dynamics?  The fact that great advertising is always built on customer insight.  Always.  And that insight can always be manipulated.  Always.

It’s important to identify what you are selling and what the consumer wants to get from your product.  For instance, Kodak originally thought they were selling cameras.  Then they decided, they were actually selling film.  Sure the camera is the first step, but the film is how they maintain the relationship.  Years later they truly identified what they were selling.   They were selling memories.

Looking at other big brands from the golden era further expands on this idea.  For example, Michelin became a huge tire brand back in the day.  They didn’t get huge by selling tires (technically) they got huge by selling safety for one’s family and one’s children.  Crest did the same thing with their “Look mom, no cavities” campaign that didn’t sell toothpaste, it sold the key to being a good mother.

In the scenarios above, we can look at it like this: the IT is the actual product a brand is selling.   So in the Michelin example, the IT is expensive tires.  The ME is what the consumer is buying (in theory) so, in this case, the consumer is buying something that qualifies them as a safe driver and a good parent.  The THEM is all of the other influences that affect the decision making process, so in this case, the idea that this brand of tires is the only safe option for my family, my friends, and those that depend on me.

All behavior is based on beliefs.  Beliefs “program” behavior.  To change behavior, you must change certain beliefs.  Advertising works to create, strengthen or alter beliefs to make people behave the way advertisers want them to.

IT beliefs engage the mind.  ME and THEM beliefs engage the heart and soul.  IT beliefs help you understand.  ME and THEM beliefs make you care.

Whatever your beliefs, one things for sure.  Strategy is more important than ever.  What we're selling isn't always what it seems.  And changing beliefs is always a necessary step to change a behavior. 

Sorry this is cryptic, it's a tough idea to wrap your head around.  I wish I had the presentation because it was definitely worth posting.  The folks at D'Arcy were on to something.  I wish I woulda been around sooner to understand just what it was.

Victors and Spoils may be the smartest, most innovative agency in the marketing/advertising industry.  Sure, I envy what they do and increasingly wish that I had been the originator of their agency model, but no matter what their successes and failures bring, I still don’t necessarily think I like them.

Victors and Spoils is the the world’s first creative (ad) agency built on crowdsourcing principles, They help businesses find a better way to solve their marketing, advertising and product-design problems by engaging the world’s most talented creatives- the crowd.  What do I mean by the crowd?  I mean a group of 3,000+ designers who check the Victors and Spoils site every week for new creative briefs to work on on their own, when their time allows.

The most interesting aspect of the agency model is the payout.  Essentially they only have to pay the winning designer.  Sure, they claim to award monetary prizes for 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and sometimes all of the participants, but essentially they choose one piece of work as the winning design. 

Let’s take a look at the most interesting example of their agency at work.  Not too long ago, leading motorcycle manufacturer Harley Davidson dropped their agency of record.  While everyone else in the industry sat by the wayside waiting for an RFP or an announcement of the next agency that would be working with the brand, John Winsor, CEO of Victors and Spoils got busy.  He wrote up a creative brief for the motorcycle brand, posted it on their project site “Squirrel fight,” and drafted a personal letter to the Harley Davidson’s CMO.  In his note, Winsor wrote the following:

Mark Hans–

It looks like you’ve been busy. We noticed that you ended your relationship with Carmichael Lynch after 31 years. Sounds tough. We also heard that you’re not going to put the account up for review. Sounds smart. AOR relationships tend to be expensive and can lack the kind of flexibility that it takes to succeed in today’s rapidly changing culture.

Anyway, it all got us thinking. We love the Harley-Davidson brand (just like most everyone). And we’ve talked to a bunch of our creatives and strategists (I dare say some of the best in the world) in our 1,800-strong creative department, and H-D was also at the top of the list of the brands they most loved. So, instead of going through the typical steps of credential decks and pitches, we thought we’d try something different.

We’re getting to work.

Just yesterday, the Victors & Spoils team did some quick strategic research pulled from public sources and went ahead and wrote a very open brief. Today, we launched it on our simple work-creation platform called The Squirrel Fight ( http://thesquirrelfight.com ). And right now, creatives and strategists from all over the world are working against your brief.

It’s really fun. And we imagine we’ll be getting in hundreds of great ideas in the next three weeks or so. As we start shaping up some of the ideas, we’d love to show them to you and your team. For every idea you want to buy and produce, we’d propose that you simply pay the V&S creative behind the idea a flat fee of $5,000. (We’re confident enough that our creative process will yield great work that we’ve decided to award $5,000 of our own money to the best idea.)

We hope you’ll give us a call. We’d love to show you what our model can do.

John

Originally, Harley Davidson scoffed at the idea, but gave Winsor the go ahead to do what he wanted to do.  Now, about four months later, Harley Davidson signed Victors and Spoils on as an agency of record for their future work.  It cost the agency a total of $5,000.  Truly amazing use of new and existing technologies to break through the boundaries of a traditional agency.

So why the hate?  Essentially it's just a matter of jealousy, but from a design perspective there is a moral issue at play.  The agency has very few salaried employees.  Essentially they freelance everything, and there are a ton of designers working for them that build their book, but also receive no physical reward for their efforts.  An interesting dilemma indeed, but one that I think Victors and Spoils is eager to defend if challenged.

Little Debbie is putting a lot of faith into Facebook.  Much like last year’s promotion that sent cupcake wrapped smart cars around the U.S. for product sampling, this year, they plan on sending an Airstream trailer to 20 cities across the U.S. where consumers can sample products and share pictures that will eventually (and inevitably) live on Facebook.

Last year’s promotion carried their Facebook fan count from 5,000 to 500,000, so naturally they’re looking for big numbers with this new campaign in hopes of topping the one million mark shortly after the end of the year.  What do they plan on doing with these newly acquired fans?  That’s the interesting part.  “It’s more about building relationships with consumers than trying to drive sales at this point,” Mr. Anthony said. “We’re thinking about Facebook as rich territory for developing future campaigns and for general ideation for all sorts for brand activities.”

I think this is pretty cool.  Hell, I’d love to work with a client that would spend 2.95 million on a social media campaign.  I’d love to work with a client that cared more about brand relationships than sales goals.  BUT, I’d also want to make sure that client was getting back the same investment they put in.  I’d want to have data that measured the amount of Little Debbie products purchased every so often from a Facebook fan vs. a non-engaged consumer.  No social media metric is impressive unless there’s data to back it up, no matter how high the number of fans or followers.  I’d want to make sure that I had skilled professionals monitoring those conversations, and mining the data for category trends and behaviors and tailor promotions towards them.  Most importantly, I wouldn’t focus on the number of interactions, I’d focus on the quality.

Do I think Little Debbie is moving too fast to reach scale rather than substance?  No.  I think they’re doing good.  Am I going to monitor this campaign and the future engagement they get out of it?  You bet. Kudos Little Debbie for branching out. 

Hostess, are you a believer yet?

Original article featured in the New York Times.

When radio came out, print was supposed to die. When TV came out, radio was supposed to die. When the Internet was born, TV was supposed to die. The reality is that with every new medium, or adjustment to a medium, new tools become available to advertisers.  Those that claim “advertising is dead” are grossly misinformed, but that’s not to say we shouldn’t be on the lookout.  If we’re not careful, it’s not the mediums that are going to put us six feet under, it’s the people using them. 

This isn’t an easy article for me to write.  With less than a year of honest “industry experience” I wouldn’t necessarily say I have an expert opinion on the matter at hand.  I do however recognize that there’s a problem, and understand the importance of outlining ways in which it can be addressed.  So what’s the problem I speak of?  It’s the people. 

This industry is officially oversaturated.  Simple economics shows that with the rise of small business, entrepreneurial adventures, and massive layoffs increasing the market for freelance marketing professionals, brands officially have too many options when looking for an agency partner.    Add into the mix the gross costs often associated with a new business pitch and you’re looking at a market that isn’t dying, rather multiplying in a manner in which it cannot sustain. 

What’s more concerning is not the increase in competitive business between agencies, but the increasing amount of brands who take it upon themselves to hire an in-house marketing expert to manage social media or community outreach rather than working with an established  industry authority.   I’m not sure where or when it happened, but at some point over the last three years, everyone became marketers.  Hell, nowadays if you know words like Zappos, Twelp Force, and Gary Vaynerchuk, you could most likely ace an interview for a marketing position. 

I know firsthand that this trend is taking over the industry.  I, like many marketing professionals nowadays started out in social media, tweeting, talking, and building relationships for brands in the digital space.  It’s fun, easy to establish credibility, and an entry-level skill set that looks great on a resume.  What brands fail to realize is that marketing, advertising, and media isn’t something that can be handled by someone without actual industry experience.  Chris Brogan’s “Trust Agents” should be on everyone’s bookshelf, but that doesn’t make them a marketer.

I often get caught up using the analogy of a medical professional.  Sure, we can read books on heart surgery, but that doesn’t make us a surgeon.  Same goes with real estate.  Sure, we can read all about it, but until we buy or sell a house, we’re just amateurs with an interest.  It’d be nice if our industry could gain back the credibility and authenticity it once had.  Instead, we’re not only competing with other agencies, we’re competing with the rise of the amateur who will do anything asked of him at a lower price and a lower standard of quality. 

So what’s the answer to the question at hand?  That’s where you come in.  What state do you think the industry is in?  Have you noticed a rise in the amateur, the guru, or the marketing specialist making waves in the smaller segments of St. Louis business?  Leave your thoughts in the replies.

You can follow me on Twitter here.

There's an unwritten rule floating around the web regarding the amount of content you should share about yourself.  Typically I think the ratio is something around 80-20 meaning for every one thing you promote about yourself, your business, or your association, there should be four times as many posts about an unaffiliated topic or unrelated subject.  Consider this my 20.

Back in March of 2010, I got the idea of creating an all-encompassing movie blog.  While my passion for marketing, social media, and the world wide web has grown over the past few years, my interest in movies dates back to a day I can't even remember.  While I'm often busy browsing business type blogs on the web, my most frequently visited sites remain movie-related. My favorites include Reelviews, Pajiba, Ain't It Cool, Ebert, and the Onion A.V. Club, and the inspiration they've provided paved the way for my newest blogging adventure.

With that, I'd like to encourage (it's way too late for introductions) you to visit my movie blog "Popcorn Jury."  It should be your number one source for new trailers on Monday, DVD Releases on Tuesday, Theatrical Release reviews on Wednesday, Industry News on Thursday, and Weekend Releases on Friday.  On top of that, I'm always posting DVD reviews, insights on industry trends, and opinions on what you should and shouldn't spend your time on.  I speak for myself when saying it's a great site with a lot of great content.  I speak for others when I say "who doesn't like movies?"

So with that, please check out Popcorn Jury.  My review of the Social Network is coming this weekend and my October Feature: Must See Horror Movies for the Holiday Season is right around the corner.

You can follow on Facebook and Twitter too!

I’ve recently been inspired by a blog post over at Creativity Unbound, written by Edward Boches.  You’re probably going to see his name come up in a lot of my articles.  He’s chief creative officer at Mullen, a huge agency out of Boston, and his ideas are often light-years (but in this case just minutes) ahead of what and how I’m thinking.  In his post titled, “Dear Marriot: Some Free Advice After a Bad Night” he talks about a rough night he had at a recent hotel stay and builds an army around the idea of the now vocal and much more powerful consumer.  With a group of around 13,000 followers on Twitter, it’s no surprise that his message didn’t fall on deaf ears.  Within hours, the general manager of the Marriot was commenting on his blog apologizing for the inconvenience.

____________________________________________________________

This isn’t a new theory.  I’ve written about how social media gives the consumer a voice, about how brands need to monitor conversations surrounding their product or service to manage crisis in the time need, and how companies no longer have control of their brands, consumers do.   The funny thing is we keep telling ourselves that we know and understand this, but companies continue to let interns and inexperienced marketers manage this information for them.  Or worse yet, they don’t monitor it at all.

The most important thing a business can do in today’s digital world is the following:

Encourage individuals to tweet, blog, post images, and videos of anything that fails to meet your standards as consumers. 

I’d even take this a step further and add:

We also encourage you to tweet, blog, post images, and video of anything that meets or exceeds your expectations.  We always appreciate positive feedback!

What does this do?  It shows consumers that you recognize their power and do everything within reason to make sure that they have a pleasant experience.

It got me thinking about a recent issue I’ve had in my own personal life, not too far removed from the hotel story mentioned above.  The past few weeks I’ve been casually browsing apartments thinking about making the move to get out on my own.  So what’s the problem?  The problem is that everywhere you turn you read a different review, see a different picture, a different price, and a different problem with a property.  Where’s the truth in advertising, where’s the corporation stepping in to diffuse any flames and put out any fires, and where is the encouragement from the company to empower the consumer to activate his/her voice.  It’s still relatively non-existent in real estate.

I was sold on finding a loft in midtown St. Louis and a property management company called Front Door stood out to me.  They had some nice available units at a relatively attractive price.  Guess what.  They were blacklisted online by consumers.  Facebook groups, blogs, message boards, all focused on negative aspects of the business and their properties.  Why isn’t someone stepping up to the plate to put out those fires?  I would never lease from their company after what I’ve read. 

Let’s look at an example.  Let’s say a renter gets on ApartmentFinder.com and writes a terrible review saying that the unit is overpriced that the management is sketchy, and that parking is a mess.  What I would then like to see is the manager of the property responding to the allegations with a reasonable response.  For instance:

“We apologize that you had a negative experience with our property.   We feel that the price is very comparable to other units in the area and we are working with the parking garage next door to create more spaces for our residents.  As for your complaints about John, our current manager, he just started a blog about our complex and the surrounding area and he would be more than happy to discuss your complaints about management.  If you’re still unhappy, we’d be more than willing to discuss the termination of your lease and other leasing opportunities you may be interested in in the area.” 

How hard is that!?

There’s also the flip side.  What if your complex only has two reviews and neither of them provides much context?  Then it would be a great idea to encourage your tenants to write reviews, blogs, tweets, etc. that promote their experience.  Hell, even offer an incentive with money off rent for those that post to a particular website; good or bad.  In a time where consumers are more influential and more credible than the company itself, it’s more important than ever to tap into them and utilize their insights and experiences.

I wish I could apologize and say I understand why companies don’t have the time or resources to manage and monitor online opinions but I really have no sympathy because it’s quite possibly one of the easiest and most important pieces of business a company can focus their attention on.  Who’s doing it right?  A lot of companies.  Who’s doing it wrong?  An inconceivable amount more.  The future of customer service is social and more businesses need to ready themselves to talk.

Need help?  Leave your email in the comments below.

Where are you right now?  Chances are I don’t have to look much further than Facebook to find out.  My friend Marissa is currently at the St. Louis Chinese Christian Church.  A guy I used to go to school with is at the Bouley Upstairs.  Someone else I know is at the Playoff Sports Bar.  Do I care?  Not really.  But it does beg the question: does sharing our location really make the world more social?  

I’ve written a ton of articles about Foursquare and I do believe that it is a social platform for the future.  It has revolutionized the way some people act and will be a great platform for location-based communication and loyalty based incentive programs down the road.  So why did Facebook enter the marketplace?  Because it can.

On the week of August 16, Facebook launched a new functionality called Places.  It’s only available on mobile devices and is used primarily to check in at different venues and share your location with friends and family who may be in near proximity to you. The video below says it best.  (Note the very apple-esque  nature of the video.  I applaud them for the effort.  It sells me with its style).

Now without further adu, the main competitor Foursquare, and the video promoting their service.  (Note the very fun nature of the video.  Not a huge fan, but the service has been around for a while now and it fits the brand and the style of the company).

As an avid fan of Foursquare I won’t lie and say that I welcome Places with open arms.  Luckily however, I don’t think this will change the game.  At this point, Foursquare has a one-up on innovation and ideas for usage.  You get badges, rewards, leave comments, receive promotions, etc.  Trust me, I know Facebook has plans to do all of this and more, and believe me, with the amount of users on the platform, they will do it with ease, but I won’t be giving up on the underdog just yet.  Plus, there’s still a very small minority of people who want to share their locations (ie. moms currently out of the equation).  

Will Facebook places make the world more social?  Maybe.  But it doesn’t change the fact that without a reason to check in, people won’t check in, without hi-speed Internet on their phone, people won’t check in, and without a guarantee that their privacy is protected, people won’t check in.  However, the fact remains: it’s a fun idea with a whole lot of substance.  What I hope for is this: a world more interested in sharing insightful information on particular places.  What I hope for more than that: that people won’t be posting info on their late night trip to McDonalds or their good night’s sleep at the Hampton Apartment Club. 

Here’s to wishful thinking.

What you do you think of Facebook Places?  Are you going to remain loyal to Foursquare?  Will you stay away and keep your location private?  You should leave your comments below.

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I’m fascinated by millenials.  It’s no surprise considering the fact that I am one, and most of the individuals I associate with on a daily basis are as well.  Blame it on association, but nevertheless, I’m here with data to back up the fact that we are, for lack of a better term, a badass generation.  

In a study led by one of my favorite integrated marketing agencies and one of Fast Company’s 10 Most Innovative Marketing companies, Mr. Youth, we’re given a look into what it may be like once Millenials start to run businesses.  

When we think of millenials, what comes to mind?  Most Gen X’ers would say “lazy, spoiled, privileged and downright obnoxious.”  I’d simply say we’re misunderstood.  What are millenials exactly?  We’re the generation born between 1978 and 1994, the generation born out of the boomers,  and the generation that will lead the country to the next big revolution.  What are some of our key characteristics?  Just keep reading.

Team Players

We are collaborative in every sense of the word.  We share responsibility and 82% of us believe it is important to have a staff that can do each other’s jobs.  We flatten leadership and divide and conquer amongst specialities rather than choosing an overarching leader to run the business.  We make decisions democratically valuing input from our peers and weighing everyone’s opinion as equal.

Risk Takers

We love change, and would change jobs often until we feel challenged by the environment around us.  We are driven by innovation and ideas and believe confidently that the grass is always greener on the other side.

Disobeyers

“Seniority” and “tenure” are dirty words to us. Authority is earned and proven through direct interactions, not given blindly based on titles and experience.   

A typical millenial viewpoint?  Look no further than below:

“In setting up the hierarchy of the company, we shouldn’t have ‘experience’ or the amount of time someone has held a roll determine their aptitude for a specific position – I’ve had more jobs where my manager doesn’t necessarily know more than me or have the ability to do the work better, they just have been there longer. We should let people grow through the company  to demonstrate ability instead.”  

Celebrities Mean Nothing

If we see a celebrity in a magazine wearing a certain designer, we have no problem adding the piece to our wish list.  If we see the same celebrity in a magazine advertising the piece, it loses it’s value.  We like invisible endorsements, and we prefer liking something, rather than being told to like it from a spokesperson.

Commercials don’t convert, but experiences do engage.  

We want relationships with brands, we want to connect as consumers, and we want the experience wrapped up neatly in whatever form we choose (iPad, laptop, tv, mobile, etc.)

We trust our peers to your print ad - change the way you work.

How can you prepare for the millenial madness that will someday take over the traditional workplace?  Mr. Youth concludes the study with the following:

• Enable open collaboration across the organization. Remove silos and enable diverse cross-functional teams 
• Ask for more from every employee. Continually present new challenges and allow for rapid growth for those who perform 
• Value ideas over experience. Seek out and recognize good ideas wherever they exist in your eco-system, whether from the CEO, mail room clerk, supplier or even customer engineer humanity. Utilize technology to make products more customized, communications more personal and consumers lives more enhanced 
• Don’t skimp on quality. Consumers will quickly avoid those products that fail to meet their expectations and have megaphones to ensure their thoughts are heard 
• Integrate responsibility into the business. Don’t give back- be a company with a mission beyond just profits 
• Be genuine. Don’t hide behind celebrity personas- focus on connecting to individual consumers and communities in ways that are authentic, relevant and meaningful  
• Think 2-way. Partner with consumers  across all areas of the business- live and breathe transparency and open communication 
• Foster advocacy. Build products and create marketing that invites consumers to share and leverages word-of-mouth, the most influential source of information  
• Change. If your business is not continually searching, evolving and finding new ways to do things, you're going to fall behind.

Still confused about this goofy generation?  I’ve got a great resource for you that I read almost every day.  The Next Great Generation. It’s a blog and a community started by Mullen’s Edward Boches, but written entirely by Gen-Y: 18-27-year-olds willing to share their thoughts regarding life, work, brands, technology, environment, money, faith, sex, love. At least that’s the idea.  Completely free and completely crowdsourced.  

We are at your fingertips waiting to get figured out.  Leave your thoughts on millenials (good or bad) in the replies.

You should follow me on Twitter @mbuffa