Andy Boyer

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Incidental Marketing

May 16, 2007 /

Hot Tipper "G$" sends across this link about Incidental or "Accidental" Marketing.

The AP article entitled "Giuliani Apologizes to Farm Family"  chronicles the media debacle caused when a Giuliani staffer mistakenly accepted a fundraising opportunity from an Iowan farming family, the VonSpreckens, and then cancelled it when they realized it was going to be a waste of time.

In the end, Giuliani turned the negative into a plus, spending 2 hours with the farm family out in eastern Iowa.  The little weekly Eastern Iowan newspaper, the Anamosa Journal-Eureka, seems appeased as well.  So it now seems everyone in Mrs. VonSprecken’s sewing circle will go vote for hizzoner.

So a couple of angles to take here: 1) Interesting that the Anamosa Journal-Eureka could contribute to a national headache for a Presidential hopeful.  2) From a marketing standpoint, every negative PR opportunity is a chance for a greater positive one.  But I’m shooting for #3) Can we finally admit that Iowa has WAY too much influence in the presidential election?

Iowa is a non-border state that does not have any oil wells, coal mines, steel refineries, automotive factories, technology leaders, entertainment hubs, travel destinations, world reknown universities, innovative medical research facilities or major population centers.  It has corn and farmers – lots of both – so there is some impact on agriculture.  And it home to the evil insurance companies and a number of banks.  But if you had to pick the most irrelevant states on an influential level, I would have to throw them in the Top 2 or 3 along with South Dakota and West Virginia. 

So the fact that the Iowa Caucuses force a Republican hopeful to cater to the damn VonSpreckens of Olin, is a complete joke.  In the several thouand hours Giuliani has left to spend with influencers, I want him meeting with tech leaders, defense specialists, cultural experts, social welfare pioneers and economic visionaries.  I want him spending as little time as possible with Grandma VonSprecken and people who will vote for him because he’s a nice, honest young man. 

Let’s let influencers influence, and let the followers watch what happens on TV. 

 

Mobile Marketing Hits Presidential Campaign

May 14, 2007 /

MocoNews reports that Hillary Clinton will add mobile marketing to her campaign promotion arsenal.  The article states,"“Clinton’s text-messaging initiative targets the 230 million American cellphone users – a sign the campaign is hunting for every possible vote in her bitter battle with rival Sen. Barack Obama. It’s only a matter of time before campaign ringtones are sold."

Tumri

May 9, 2007 /

I’m playing with some widget technologies from Tumri.  Haven’t gotten it to work 100% as planned yet, but it’s interesting.  I wonder why Froogle hasn’t done anything like this yet.  My Tumri experiments are here at www.andyboyer.com/tumri

Wild prediction – Google buys Tumri for $50- $100M in < 24 months.

Comparing Paris Hilton to ……. Richard Nixon?

May 8, 2007 /

Just to make it clear, I’m not a Paris basher.  She is a world famous actress / model / spokeswoman / entrepreneur and I am simply a marketing guy in Seattle.   Her ability to charm the world is unparalleled and I can’t help but respect her for it. If I was a PhD student, I might even devote my research to the Paris Hilton Brand and how companies could emulate her formula for success.

Nonetheless,you had to question the defense strategy last week of, "My publicist said it was ok to drive with a suspended license if I was going to a work event."  (Which is ridiculous in itself and doesn’t address why she would be drunk going to work….)

And therefore, you can’t help but chuckle at the latest petition circling the internet.  In it, Paris fans appeal to Governor Schwarzenegger to pardon her.  The notable reasons include these gems:

  • We, the American public who support Paris, are shocked, dismayed and appalled by how Paris has been the person to be used as an example that Drunk Driving is wrong.
  • Paris should have been sober. But she shouldn’t go to jail, either. 
  • Please allow her to her return to her career and life. Everyone makes mistakes. She didn’t hurt or kill anyone, and she has learned her lesson.
  • She is sincere, apologetic, and full of regret for her actions as she explained tearfully to the Judge handling her case in court yesterday.She is distraught and understandably afraid.
  • Think about the welfare of this young woman who has made a mortal error and deserves a second chance like so many others in our great nation have been served with after a mistake they have made.
  • If the late Former President Gerald Ford could find it in his heart to pardon the late Former President Richard Nixon after his mistake(s), we undeniably support Paris Hilton being pardoned for her honest mistake as well.

So yes, ‘We the American Public" have apparently compared Paris Hilton’s DUI and probation violation, with a National political scandal that forced the removal of a President. Do you want to talk about leaps and chasms?

And the irony is, the media will probably turn this into an issue that defines the Governator’s term of office. 

TV, Radio, Print and Dry Cleaning Bags

May 5, 2007 /

When picking up some shirts for a business trip, I inadvertently ran across a new form of advertising – the protective bags covering my freshly laundered shirts.

In a rare case of the creative matching with the medium, the tag line read:  "Don’t let your investment advisor take you to the cleaners. Try Charles Schwab."

Now whether people have a direct response reaction to this promotion remains to be seen.  But it must be an effective CPM, and it definitely targets higher income individuals, or at least people who have to where button-down shirts and suits to work.   

But is this too intrusive?  Do you have a negative reaction to being marketed services when you are having another service provided for you at the same time?   Would it bug you if your maids came in wearing American Expres hats?  Or if your auto repair guy had a HR Block patch?  Nonetheless, a trend to keep watching.

Overachiever….

April 28, 2007 /

Not sure how I missed this last week.  And I’m not sure if this makes me feel inadeqaute or just dumbfounded.  According to sources, including FoxSports, Lil Romeo, the youth rapper and son of Hip-hop mogul Master P, is now going to play basketball for USC. 

The kid is 17.  His life to date includes the following accomplishments:
– The son of a record mogul worth $225 million
– A young hip-hop artist with several CD’s and concert tours
– And now, he’ll be a guard on a top 25 college basketball team.

Hello perfect life. 

Plus, I give him a huge amount of credit because you never see his name listed next to Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton or Nicole Richie. 

Can we look 30 years ahead and predict that this kid is going to either be the President of the U.S. or the guy backing the President?  Legacy, music, sports – with what is sure to be a future in film, TV and more.  This kid is obviously no dummy, and his father has certainly proved himself to be highly intelligent. 

What an exciting future this guy has in front of him.

Hey 7-11 Marketing Guy – This is What We Call a “Slam Dunk”

April 24, 2007 /

Seriously, how come marketing opps like this don’t land in my lap…..   Hello 7-11 PR guy.  Please send 3 machines, along with cameras from Jay Leno or Jon Stewart show, immediately to the quartermaster.  Start collecting emails from your boss and stockholders about what a good guy you are.  Enjoy your 15 minutes of fame on Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. Is this really that hard….

From the AP

Frozen drinks in the desert: Soldier’s mom trying to send a Slurpee machine to Iraq

ALBANY, Ore. — An Albany woman with a son in Iraq is raising money to buy his 82nd Airborne unit a machine that makes "Slurpee" type frozen carbonated drinks.  Sharon Crary said her son, Pfc. Preston Crary, 21, a chaplain’s assistant, asked for a machine that could make enough drinks to serve up to 100 soldiers at a time. Preston told his mother the machine would be a "great morale booster." It would stay in Iraq when Preston rotates home in March or April 2008. His Army unit is a mixture of infantry, medics, mechanics and other support soldiers.

Because of red tape involved in raising the money and sending such a large item overseas, she has joined up with Give 2 The Troops, a nonpartisan, nonpolitical group formed to support deployed troops. Members try to get letters and care packages to soldiers in war zones.

"Working with the organization enables us to purchase the machine wholesale and provide a tax-deductible receipt to those making donations," she said. "The machine costs about $1,600 with shipping and supplies, such as flavorings and cups. I figure the total cost will be about $2,500."

Sharon Crary teaches private English speech improvement classes but is taking time off for the project.

Tragedy at V-Tech; Facebook Emerges as Vital Communication Tool

April 17, 2007 /

The U.S. found a new tool in how to communicate on a one to many way in times of crisis today.  On this national day of sorrow and disbelief, Facebook.com proved that the world of social networking extends past sharing pictures and music tastes.

One LA Times Article includes the following paragraph.  "University of Southern California sophomore Charlotte Korchak received a call from her mother in Maryland — Virginia Tech, she learned, was a death scene. Rather than tie up the cellphones of friends who attend the school, the 19-year-old history major checked their pages on Facebook, the social-networking site. ‘I was able to immediately find out who was OK,’ she said. ‘Without Facebook I have no idea how I would have found that out.’"

The site has also become a place for people to share support.  One group has over 1,300 members.  This condolences group contains over 2,600.  Here’s a prayer group with 2,100.

In real time yesterday, Bryce’s Journal was a source of up to the minute information, which led to an interesting moral argument.  The CBC TV network posted to his blog comments section asking him to call and provide his account on the air in addition to the blog.  This became a source of hostility for the blog readers, who felt that their reading the accounts was not voyeurism, but that a major TV network relaying those accounts would be exploitation. Bryce’s Journal continues to be a source of pretty startling emotional writing.

There’s little doubt that this tragedy could have been avoided if news of the first shooting, and warnings to get off campus, could have been conveyed in a more efficient manner.  I think we can look at social networking, especially in the mobile space, as something to considered for emergency response.

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