Monthly Archive for June, 2007

My Own Shop

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 26, 2007
in Advertising, Bad Marketing, Business and Marketers
. 4 Comments

I know this page is beautiful, but if you're into feeds, you can subscribe and get all this ANM goodness right in your feed reader. And hey, do you love comments? I know I do. Feel free to let me know what you think!

Have you seen any websites for marketing or advertising firms lately?

Go ahead. Open another tab and search for some. Look at a few of them. Notice anything?

They all look the same. They all have a short section about the firm, a quick list of their “core values” or “goals,” they list samples of their recent work, and then they say something to the effect of “…we deliver a unique experience for our clients to build brands and engage audiences..” (What does that stuff even mean?)

My question is this: If they can’t even differentiate themselves, how can you expect them to do it for you or your product? Sure flashy graphics and novel interfaces add a little value (see Leo Burnett), but with the same old information, it’s like putting a brand new paint job on your 1987 Toyota Camry. Sure it looks better, but it runs just the same.

If I ran an agency, the first thing you would see on my page would be a phone number. And not just a number leading to nowhere, but one that put you in touch with an agency rep that had the power to get things rolling. Sure it’s important to feature some of your work for people who are just browsing, but the ability to deliver real, personal insights immediately makes a big difference.

Another thing I would feature on my site would be a live chat room, where members of my team are both encouraged and sometimes directed to hang out. The purpose of this room is to provide some interaction for people with questions, and also just to set up a forum to talk marketing. If you’re considering hiring an agency, you want to know how they think, and what better way than to discuss it with them.

So there it is..a couple ideas from me. Look for me opening up my own shop sometime in the next 20 years. Look forward to hearing from you.

The Worst Metaphor Ever

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 26, 2007
in Business and Entrepreneurship
. 0 Comments

Business is NOT war.

No matter how tough your office is, or no matter how kick-ass-and-take-names your work environment might be, it’s not combat.

Today, a great business has more in common with the Linux community or Wikipedia than the 101st Airborne.

Avoid A Malcommunication

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 25, 2007
in Communication and Marketers
. 0 Comments

If a miscommunication is a wrong message, than a malcommunication is a bad message. Use these conversational tips to avoid them in the future.

– Write to be said not read - This is pretty simple. When you read something, you’re basically saying it in your head. So write things that sound good, not just look good. The best way to get better at this is to think conversation not corporate when putting something together. That doesn’t mean avoid a professional tone, just don’t write something that always sounds like a press release.

– Their voice, not yours - When people read something, they hear their own voice reading it. So no matter how eloquent you think you sound reading what you wrote, it doesn’t make a difference in the end.

– Be Spartan - People have much less time today. So why is everything still so verbose? If you can get to the point in a few sentences - do it. Fluff was okay in high school, but it’s not okay for ANY business communications. Bold and bullet points are your friends.

–Please, Readers..Be Personal - Write as if you’re really writing to somebody. If you’re writing a press release or something that doesn’t have a direct or single recipient, this is a little more difficult, but that shouldn’t stop you from injecting some of your own personality into whatever you’re working on. If you are writing to someone, then write to them! Personal communication shouldn’t sound like a scripted infomercial.

You at 65mph

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 25, 2007
in Advertising, Marketers and New Marketing
. 0 Comments

Imagine all you have is a highway billboard.

Can you be attention-grabbing, witty, and informative all in one sentence?

What would you write about you/your business?

us-006_speed_limit_65.jpg

The Man Behind The Curtain

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 23, 2007
in Bad Marketing, Marketers and New Marketing
. 2 Comments

As marketers (and we’re all marketers, some of us just get paid for it*), how do you feel about other marketing?

Sometimes I see really good marketing (anything iPod, Geico cavemen, Southwest’s ding) and get excited because I realize it’s also good from a technical standpoint.

Other times I see “good marketing” (Abercrombie stores/ads, Dove’s campaign for real beauty), realize what they’re trying to do, and feel manipulated.

Does anyone else ever feel this way? Is it because we know what’s going on? Like seeing the “making-of” before watching the movie itself?

Sometimes I wish I didn’t know there was a man behind the curtain.

*I would like to get paid for it - If you’re interested email me

The Right Thing

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 22, 2007
in Advertising, Entrepreneurship and Products
. 0 Comments

It looks as though Bob Phillips and California Tortilla found the answer to the questions in my last post - the right people.

In response to me, Bob writes “In our experience the vast majority of customers and employees want to do the right thing.”
(check out the rest of his comments here)

And that’s something to be proud of.

Rock…Paper…Scissors…Abuse!

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 22, 2007
in Entrepreneurship and Marketers
. 6 Comments

I’ve been known to play devil’s advocate from time to time, and this post it no different. Let me say up front that I largley agree with Seth Godin on the Rock, Paper, Scissors promotion and Andrew Barbaccia makes a good point too, but there’s a big part of human nature that neither of these guys are factoring in.

People abuse good things. A lot.

I recently signed up for MySpace, and within the first 4 days I had 10 friend requests from “people” wanting me to check out their webcam. Or notes from “concerned friends” who wanted to show me the best place to get Viagra.

I use (and love) StumbleUpon to find new marketing sites, but after running into the hundredth SEO service or other pyramid scheme, it starts to drag the whole thing down a little.

My point is that while I see nothing wrong with empowering the front-line worker, I think that it has a lot of potential to be abused. The goal is to add some humanity and fun to otherwise mundane tasks, but what about the cashier who just gives everyone the discount because they’re too lazy, or don’t like playing a game? What about the person in AR that gives a prize to a certain company every time because they’re trying to go work there?

How do you fix those problems, which seem rooted in human nature?

WOW! 50% Off This Post!

Published
by
Matt
on Jun 21, 2007
in Advertising, Bad Marketing, Marketers and Products
. 3 Comments

I was in a leather shop in Florence a little over a week ago. Soon after one of the salespeople discovered that I was a recent graduate (and therefore didn’t have much money) he leaned in, and as if sharing a little secret between us said, “Well, I’ll tell you what, I can give you anything in here for half off…”

Knowing the store was still making a healthy profit after that “deep” discount, I got to thinking about how marked up everything must be. Not just in this leather store in Italy, but everywhere.

I recently saw a coupon for $50 off a membership at a local pool club. If they can offer that much money off and still make money on the membership, then just how much profit are they making without the sale? Seems like a little much to me.

The knee-jerk reaction to a great sale is “Wow! What a good deal…” but the more you think about it, the more the reaction turns to “Wow! I’m really getting ripped off normally..”

Is that the kind of message you want to send?