December 1, 2007
The Players
Urban Refuge
An unexpected oasis amid New York's hustle and bustle set up shop as The Spa Experience for four days last month at Grand Central Terminal. Weary commuters...
Digital Directive
Consumers love to get free music downloads. Starbucks, on Nov. 7, wrapped a month long promotion that gave away more than 50 million iTunes songs. ...
Good Deeds
Starbucks is back again with its Cheer Pass promotion, this time spreading good tidings across the globe. For the first time, the cards are being distributed...
Interactive
Soft Soap
Quick, what's the longest story ever told? If you answered daytime drama The Guiding Light, then Procter & Gamble has done its job. The company originally...
Voice Lessons
At first glance, building a word-of-mouth marketing campaign around a low-cost-to-free phone service would seem about as complex as organizing a one-car parade. ...
Retail
Jordan's Monster Deal: Rebate or Lottery?
Boston Red Sox fans who bought sofas during Jordan Furniture's Monster Deal last spring were sitting pretty after their team swept the Colorado Rockies...
Experiential
College Bowl Sprawl
The college bowl scene, once a few games dominating New Year's Day television, has evolved into a protracted branding bonanza kicking off before Christmas....
Commentary
When is too Far?
Ok, this might be an unpopular thing to write on this page. But the reality is that there always has been an undercurrent of dread for commercial ploys...
A Bear Story
Patty Odell shares a curious tale of a wily bear and good customer service....
Fortuitous Mistakes
As Marketers, we make all kinds of mistakes. We may not care to admit it, but on average even the best measurable marketers are right only about a third...
Letters
Letters to the Editor
Robert Crumb is right on target! It's tough to swallow. The truth of it is, our society despises most of the techniques real advertising does. Much of it is invasive and done in poor taste. Advertising has changed much in the same way that science fiction and horror movies have changed from the 1950s and 1960s. Nowadays those types of films have...
Cover Story
Blue Christmas
Blame it on the mortgage crisis or on high fuel costs. But consumers are expected to limit their holiday gift-giving this year, and that's going to hurt...
Features
Widgets? They're Easy
Staples has an button for you. In fact, it has several. There's the one that's been featured in its print and television ads since 2005. There's also...
Clutter Cutter
John Miller has been promoting TV programs since the 1970s when the Big Three broadcast networks constituted commercial television. But things have changed:...
Marketplace
Secret Weapon?
The marketing tactic that most directly changes consumer behavior sampling is frequently left at the bottom of the marketing budget. Study after study...
Promoland
The Latest in Narrowcasting
Dogs can pick up soundwaves that humans can't hear. And some preoccupied creative individuals are often accused of following the beat of their own drum...
Straight Out of Harlem
Rapper 50 Cent's Latest album Curtis helped him win the World's Best Selling Artist Award (at the World Music Awards last month), which is determined...
