by Susan Carroll | Sep 22, 2011 | Random
I just started watching the Mad Men series via the Wii and Netflix. I’d tried watching it when it first aired. But I couldn’t stomach it. It was just too depressing. I had believed in the “Golden Age of Advertising.” You could be creative and make lots of money! But by 1980 that era had passed. We’d entered the age of feminism, and unlike Peg, it didn’t occur to me what a lethal combination it was to be both a young woman and a lousy secretary!
I had the nerve, as I sat behind my selectric, of telling one of the older print rep guys that my name was not “honey.” I had the silly nerve to suggest to the alcoholic production chief process improvements after only a year of typing.
In Mad Men, we see the emptiness of the early ’60’s zeitgeist, through a glass darkly. These characters are as plastic and fantastic and self-serving as a slick ad. Even though not everyone in the early ’60’s—even in advertising—was a racist, misogynist, bigot, chain-smoking sex and alcohol addict. Unlike the reviewer, I think this show is filmed, acted and directed brilliantly. The characters walk stiffly like headless mannequins through their blank lives, consumed with image over substance.
When I was a little girl, my older sister’s Barbie had heavy blue-lidded eyes and a big bald spot on the top of her skull when you took out out her pony tail. She would make out with the Lone Ranger. I couldn’t abide by this so I lynched her over the upstairs railing. I still remember feeling remorse for that. I knew I was being “bad” …But now I am glad I did.
by Susan Carroll | Sep 14, 2011 | Random
Giving Customers What They Want
Before “customer-centric” marketing grabbed the ear of the executive suite copywriters were crying in the wilderness: “Give your customers what they want.” In the process of writing copy, the copywriter has to make stuff up they think the customer wants — not just what they want to hear. In doing so, they are providing their clients with invaluable creativity at a very reasonable price. But all too often, when a copywriter even questions a creative brief, or makes a suggestion not on the brief, they get their hands slapped.
I’d like to remind marketers to think of customers/potential customers as an audience, rather than a target, and the copywriter as a translator between the two. Equip your writer with your ideas, the support information they ask for and work with them on a direction. If you don’t give them that, don’t be surprised when they “fill in the blanks” differently than you expect. The writer should be encouraged to make suggestions about what the product can deliver, not discouraged.
Speak Softly and Listen to Your Copywriter
Think how you would feel if you were the object of a sales pitch, and you’ll understand the challenge the writer faces as the intermediary between you and your customer. Ask yourself these questions when reviewing your copy:
“Do I want to be yelled at?”
(how many times must you say free and how loud?)
“Do I believe that?”
“Does that sound true?”
“Am I giving the person an idea they can focus on?”
“Am I putting the person to sleep with too much information?”
“Am I giving the person too little information?”
“Does the information relate to a need or desire the person has?”
“Am I wasting this person’s time by using the same words my competitor’s use?”
“Why would they choose me over my competition?”
“Do I like listening to ‘corp speak’ or do I prefer conversations?”
by Susan Carroll | Sep 7, 2011 | Random
What is RSS? Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary (RSS) finds and gathers headlines and snippets of content (both text and multimedia) together with their links from across the web. RSS content management software organizes these feeds by topic, and sometimes category. Users select the topics they want to read about through a news feed, either installed on their computer or through an online service, such as delicious (which I use through my Yahoo! account) or newsgator. Then you can have the service deliver the latest news of current interest to you to your email. Here’s a list of RSS readers and aggregators.
By subscribing to an RSS feed, you can stay up to the minute with industry buzz. RSS is a great tool for market research and competitive analysis. If there’s a news or blog storm brewing, you’ll be among the first to know about it.
By syndicating your content through RSS, you’re creating a viral niche marketing opportunity – with a virtually unlimited ability to be linked by any number of subscribers or sites. As a promotional tool you can
Feature your news aggregator button on your site. Put an RSS newsfeed on the news section of your website, and news sources interested in your topic may find you even if you never send them a news release.
Unlike email marketing, the opt-in is built-in.
RSS is spam-free, so you don’t have to worry about your information getting blocked.
What’s more, you can pick up fresh content daily to add to your site, since copyright on shared content has been cleared by the posting source. Timely commentaries direct from your website or blog, if RSS enabled, create more exposure for your company.
You can find those who’ve bookmarked a topic you’re interested or engaged in. And then add them to your network and share bookmarks back and forth. Sites where you frequently post and to which you link may feature your RSS link — so it’s a great link building tool. With a bit of dedication, you can become an industry insider in a topical circle on the web.
The Ultimate Niche Marketing Tool
The beauty of RSS for marketers is that your prospect is already receptive to your message. RSS allows the user ultimate control over how and when they receive information, which can comethrough their TiVO, iPOD, text message, satellite radio, and other consumer-controlled media. In fact, RSS is increasingly
interactive: Yahoo! Shopping allows users to create lists of products they like or don’t like, and distribute these lists via RSS. So, although it’s a bit of a double-edged sword if your news isn’t necessarily good news, marketers who are on their toes can really tune into their customers.
American Life Project found that 6 million Americans use RSS aggregators for online news in 2006. Slashdot.org, a leading edge technology blog, showed that 73 percent of its existing RSS users intend to increase their RSS consumption this year.
Ready for RSS Advertising?
Advertising embedded in RSS feeds is a hot topic. You can find case studies on Pheedo and other web analysis services. Pheedo as well as FeedBurner and Syndicate IQ provide RSS Metrics. You can get statistics on the daily circulation, activity, advertising stats and the number of requests for your feed.
by Susan Carroll | Mar 16, 2011 | Random
The day before the terrible Tsunami struck Japan, Yahoo! News carried a story entitled “Will March 19 ‘Supermoon’ Trigger Natural Disasters?” picked up from Life’s Little Mysteries (March 10). After a quick read it was clear that the term “Supermoon” was coined by an astrologer, but the possibility that the moon might have a greater pull on ocean tides, thus relieving pressure on the tectonic plates (especially in the Northwest U.S.) was posited by a U. of Washington scientist. I did wonder if the 8.9 earthquake may have been affected by this closeness, called a perigee. But by the 4th paragraph it was clear that it’s the fullness of the moon, not it’s distance, that affects tides. Theoretically it should affect seismic activity, but scientifically there has not been any historic correlation.
Life’s Little Mysteries (March 11 story) clarifies the correlation between seismic activity and the moon. A scientist friend of mine said that the “Supermoon” was a “hoax”. But that’s not quite true. The “Supermoon” is really a superb moon. It underscored to me that words do matter — especially about the way we interpret facts vs. ideas. And that neither science nor mysticism is clearly separated in our concept of the world. The only thing that clarifies the distinction is the use of words.
by Susan Carroll | Nov 17, 2010 | Random
Playing Literati on Yahoo! the other day, I decided to look at the banner ad interrupting my game and noticed it was for “Pristiq”. Well, I like Pristiq very much, so I actually read this ad: All it had was the “Pristiq” logo and a scrolling list of “Important Safety Information” along with a button for “Important Safety Information” and a link to their website.
The most important safety information is so dull and long that I doubt very many people want to read it on a banner ad. I mean, this ad didn’t even show the wind-up doll. There was nothing but the brand’s logo on it. Not even the FDA-approved indication.
I propose making the important safety information more palatable to the average consumer — after all, I’m a consumer myself. Why not something like, “Pristiq, like all anti-depressants in its class, has not been ok’d by the FDA for adolescents or pregant women. Also, people with X, Y, Z problems really need to be careful about it. For more safety information click here.
