A lot has been said about Barnes and Noble’s new eBook reader, nook. It’s got a lot of innovative features, and it looks to be the first legitimate contender to the Amazon Kindle, the current king of the castle.

One feature that’s been getting a lot of press is the “LendMe” function which allows you to take a book you have purchased and “lend” it to a friend (with a nook) for a limited period of time. Just like a real book, when you lend something out, it gets removed from you library.

At first it seems like a pretty solid feature, but when you think about it, it misses the point. B&N is banking on the fact that people have this established behavior of lending books, and that when you lend a book you no longer have it in your possession. However, this behavior also operates on the notion of physical scarcity (i.e. “This is my singular copy, you may take it from me”). With digital distribution, there is no scarcity. Due to the nature of the medium, just because I have one, doesn’t mean you can’t. We can both have it at the same time because it exists in 1′s and 0′s not covers and pages.

I know this idea goes contrary to their business model, but one has to think that if a company continues to build business models on outdated ideas and concepts, they’re backing themselves into a corner already.

Behold the contents of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 “Prestige Edition” pack. Now maybe you didn’t notice right away, but sitting there right in front of the (pretty standard) metal case and art book is a pair of FULLY FUNCTIONAL NIGHT VISION GOGGLES.

Seriously?

Now, as an avid gamer, I’m all for collectors editions. If there’s a game that I particularly am going to enjoy, then sometimes the extra stuff is a great little touch. Companies have done some creative stuff with pre-order and collectors edition stuff recently, ranging from in-game bonus content (missions, vehicles, etc.) to fun props (such as the lunchbox and bobblehead from Fallout 3), but this pack bothers me a little for two reasons.

First, it bothers me because it’s probably going to be pretty damn expensive. I mean, it almost has to be with a pair of working NIGHT VISION GOGGLES. And because the first Modern Warfare was one of the best selling games ever, and because the demand for this one is going to be bananas, it’s still going to sell. I feel like Activision sat down and said “Hey, what ridiculous thing can we package with the Ridiculous Edition so we can charge a Ridiculous amount for it?”. Bingo, we have a winner!

The second reason is that the “cool” factor of this has a limited reach. Sure your friends/family/spouse (maybe not if you bought this) will think you’re the man, but no one else will ever know. Gamers love looking cool, and most other gamers only see you in the game. So how about you offer a sweet extra gun? Or an exclusive character model like Bungie is doing with Halo ODST.

But even as I write this, I know this thing is going to sell out. And that’s okay. I’m sure you’ll find all sorts of practical uses for your video game branded NIGHT VISION GOGGLES.

A little while back, a user named Levinator25 posted a video from the EA game Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2008. The video depicted a glitch in which Tiger Woods hit a miraculous shot, dubbed “The Jesus Shot” …from the middle of a pond. Most companies would either A)be completely unaware of this video’s existence, or B)do absolutely nothing about it. Not EA, and with Tiger Woods himself, here’s their response.

Glitch? What glitch?

Well played EA. Class dismissed.

originally found on Joystiq

I love hardcore gaming PC’s. I don’t know, but there’s just something about a computer with enough horsepower to run a small country that appeals to me.

For a long time, these gaming computers looked just like their mundane cubicle-dwelling counterparts. If you think about it, that’s like having a Ford Taurus that runs like a Lamborghini Gallardo. But somewhere along the line, someone decided that these machines need to be as intimidating and intense on the outside as they are on the inside. It’s about time.

Take a long look at the Acer Predator (above), the HP Blackbird 002 (left), the Dell XPS 730 (center), and the Alienware Area-51 (right).

All beautiful, but in a F-22 Raptor sort of way.

The “big idea” here is form meeting function. Just like Apple and Nintendo, these PC makers understand that design matters in this market. It doesn’t everywhere (nails, manhole covers, manila folders), but figuring out where design is really important, and where its superfluous is something that you always have to pay attention to.

I would love to take any of these for a test drive, but doubt I’ll ever have the opportunity. So if you’re out there Acer, HP, Dell, or Alienware and are looking for a few good testers, let me know.

Hey, it’s cheaper than a few plane tickets.

That’s Apple for you. I can’t think of any other brand out there that consistently mistreats their customers, yet has a fan base that would lay down on train tracks for them.

Price gouging early adopters? Sure why not. Removable batteries? Keep dreaming. But still, I know people that almost wet their pants waiting for Steve to unveil the MacBook Air.

The big thing for me here is that, apparently, consumers will ignore or forgive a brand’s missteps if their product is exceptional. But how long can this last? Will Apple be able to plow along, doing whatever it pleases and still create new fans? Or will someone else come and deliver a great product AND great customer interaction.

What do you think?

This has been a truly massive campaign, spanning almost every media you can think of. They even have a Halo 3 version of Mountain Dew, most likely a first for video games. And how did it fare? I’m pretty sure 170 million dollars in the first 24 hours is a sound success. That’s more than the Spiderman and Harry Potter movies if you’re counting.

This is incredible for me, as someone who has been playing games for a long time, because 10 or so years ago, there was barely any mainstream video game advertising at all. How things have changed. I guess you just have to believe.

I don’t know many people who read books in one sitting, and that means they’re going to need something to keep their place. It’s not expensive, it’s not difficult, and it’s almost guaranteed to get use in at least one book. Which means more visibility and recognition.

Sometimes, finding the right context for a product makes a big difference. I’m sure there are a lot of other opportunities out there like this one, it’s just a matter of finding them.

I like this ad, and more importantly, I like where it fits in with Old Spice’s new direction. The “Experience” campaign, with the ever-cool Bruce Campbell (check him out in USA’s Burn Notice) has given new life to a lagging brand. Old spice was getting clobbered and needed something to combat AXE’s edgy, sexy appeal. Their answer? Old-school with a touch of class and sass. Check out the old and new body spray designs:

Old Spice was smart here in recognizing that you can’t win by following the leader. Their move was similar to Nintendo’s with the Wii because they decided to go in a different direction. Sometimes the answer isn’t overtaking the leader in your niche, but either taking a different angle at the same niche or finding a different one all together.

But there’s one huge opportunity that’s being missed. The hook.

By selling a series’ first season at such high prices, they’re cutting out all the people who want to get into the show. There are several shows out there that I’d probably love, and what better way to get started than to buy the first season on DVD? The thing is, I’m not willing to shell out 50-70 dollars just to catch up on something I might like. And I’d bet that I’m not alone.

If I were the networks, I’d sell the first season cheap. Not at a loss, but cheap enough to get people interested. The benefit would be twofold. First, it would make the studio money, and second it would increase the viewership because people would want to continue to follow the story.

Who knows? It might just be all the hook you need to take a show from obscurity to the big time.

Features tell us what a product has, what it’s made up of, or how it’s made. The only problem is, most people don’t care about that at all. The thing people want to know is, “What can it do for me?”. Explaining the benefits will get you much farther.

If features are the only thing provided, people mentally convert them to benefits anyway. It’s a natural progression that we’ll call The Derived Benefits Model:
See feature listing >> Think about features (in relation to self) >> Figure out derived benefit from features

For example:
The TV is capable of 1080i resoultion >> The picture will be sharper >> I can enjoy my favorite shows more because of the clearer image

So why let people go through that entire process when you could just explain the benefits right away? If you cut out the middleman and get right to the benefits, it cuts down on the work people have to do to understand your offering.

Instead of advertising the 100gb hard drive on that DVR, let people know that they can save entire seasons of Lost, 24, and Grey’s Anatomy. Instead of talking about a carbon fiber frame on your sunglasses, tell people that they’re so light they can wear them all day. Instead of explaining the depth of the spikes on your cleats, let them know they’ll get a great jump stealing second base.

So the next time you’re writing copy, giving a speech, putting together materials, blogging, or talking to a customer – just remember Benefits > Features.