Electronic Retailer’s January 2010 issue featuring Jeff Taylor (founder of Monster.com and CEO of Eons.com) is now available online. For more information on Jeff’s upcoming keynote address at the ERA Great Ideas Summit, click here.
Archive for the ‘Branding’ Category
January 2010 Issue Now Available Online!
Friday, January 15th, 2010
New Strategies Used in Spending this Holiday Season
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
The economic downturn first hit just before the holidays last year and companies were by no means eager to continue to throw money into advertising when it was clear no one was buying.
Consumers and companies alike were panicking, and everyone stopped spending. This year, though, we may be seeing the economic boost the holidays have always promised – and we might be getting that present a little early.
A wide range of retailers put money into holiday campaigns, and they showed more enthusiasm for spending ad dollars than they have in previous years, especially in TV.
The Gap, for example, hasn’t bought television ads for two years, but returned to the tube this year with a new campaign. Wal-Mart, K-Mart and other bargain-priced stores pitched the savings tip hard this year, as consumers cautiously began to spend money again while sticking within their budget.
By positioning themselves as the places where consumers can get the most bang for their buck, both stores hope to see a good return on their ad investment.
Best Buy, J.C. Penney, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Sears, OfficeMax and many others jumped on the ad bandwagon. While strategies and ad mediums differed, the message was the same: Spend money this holiday season, but shop here and you’ll spend much less.
I think you will see an extension of this message following the holidays, to try and tap into a more cost conscious consumer mentality even as the recession recedes. Retailers and marketers who can effectively position their products and services as good values will have more success in today’s challenging marketplace.
Peter Koepell is the President of Koeppel Direct and has over 25 years of advertising, marketing and media experience.
Got Your Halloween Outfit Ready?
Thursday, October 29th, 2009The spookiest of American holidays is just days away. If you’re like me, you’re still scrambling for a unique and easy-to-throw-together-last-minute costume. The thought entering an over-stimulating and smelly party store just days before Halloween is out of the question for me, but will be my outfit be as cool as others?
Apparently the days of your dad throwing a sheet over your body and calling you a ghost are over. The costumes these days are more and more intricate and creative. From Kate Gosselin wigs to the late Michael Jackson and DRTV’s very own Billy Mays outfits, the best-selling costumes this Halloween season are personal and fierce!
Think dressing up as the legendary Billy Mays is tasteless and offensive? Well, Billy’s son, Billy Mays III, gives these outfits the Mays’ signature two thumbs up seal of approval! He’s even throwing a contest for his fans to see who has the best Billy Mays outfit on his website www.wheresbillymays.com. So go ahead, bust out your blue shirt and represent Billy’s positive spirit this season - you won’t be alone!
Jamie Hill is ERA’s marketing manager.
Online Strategies September Issue Now Available!
Thursday, September 24th, 2009
Click here to read Online Strategies magazine’s September issue!
September ‘09 Issue Now Available Online!
Tuesday, September 8th, 2009
Electronic Retailer’s September ‘09 issue featuring Montel Williams is now available online! For more information about Motel’s upcoming keynote presentation at the ERA D2C Convention on Monday, Sept. 14, click here.
Online Strategies August Issue Now Available!
Monday, August 31st, 2009
Click here to read Online Strategies magazine’s August issue!
YouTube: Your New Partner in Sales?
Friday, August 28th, 2009
When utilized correctly, YouTube is quite the sales force to be reckoned with. On a recent conference call with ERA’s Internet & Emerging Media Council, certain members discussed how some direct response products have found success simply from videos being uploaded to YouTube.
Creative YouTube videos are a great way to drive incremental sales, if even on accident. If you’re Chris Brown, a singer recently convicted for felony assault against ex-girlfriend Rihanna, how do you get a year-old single onto the top 10 most purchased songs on iTunes? Oh, by being an integral part of a wild fire-spread YouTube video. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably seen this “Forever” wedding video.
While perusing iTunes when this video hit viral fame a few weeks back, I noticed that Chris Brown’s “Forever” was listed in the top 10 purchased singles. A web hit featuring one of his songs couldn’t have come at a better time for this artist whose image is tarnished in the press. I too, drank the Kool-Aid. I watched the video and loved it, logged onto iTunes and purchased.
Consequently, aside from user-generated content, YouTube also plays host to professional content, sometimes to the chagrin of the content creators. Monty Python’s producers found their content all over the web illegally, however they decided to be proactive and take control of their content in these channels, which turned out to be a very good idea. According to a recent release:
The Pythons created a YouTube channel in November 2008 just to stop their content from being released illegally on the Internet. “We felt the time had come to deal with the ‘YouTube problem.’ On the one hand, we were surprised at the number of clips that had been uploaded to YouTube in clear infringement of our copyright, and while we didn’t want to be spoilsports, it was getting pretty much out of control and we could see no real benefit. So I arranged a trip to meet the YouTube guys on the Google campus in San Jose and discovered that they had a program that would enable us to have our own Monty Python channel on YouTube where we could put up clips from the movies and TV shows of far greater quality and order that might also encourage viewers to want to see whole movies or TV episodes via links to Amazon and iTunes and expand our Monty Python fan base,” says Monty Python producer John Goldstone.
When Goldstone launched Monty Python’s Channel on November 14, 2008, he took advantage of YouTube’s click-to-buy program. The Python’s DVDs quickly climbed to No. 2 on Amazon’s Movies & TV bestsellers list and DVD sales increased 23,000 percent. “The click-to-buy ability was exactly what we were looking for to make the link from video to the right Amazon page much more effective than the URL by the side of the video description. We are only now beginning to address premium advertising, which is only possible when you can show the size, composition, and consistency of your viewers,” he says.
I guess the moral of the story would be that while YouTube may be struggling to support itself with a successful advertising platform, it currently sits as a lucrative marketing channel for the opportunistic, inventive marketer.
Pat Cauley is Electronic Retailer magazine’s eMedia editor.
All Aboard! Your Upcoming ERA Travel Itinerary
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
In addition to its upcoming D2C Convention in Las Vegas Sept. 13-15, ERA has also announced an October 19th networking reception in San Diego!
Before booking your travel to Las Vegas or San Diego, you may first want to get a few tips from “Saturday Night Live” travel expert Judy Grimes.
Did you miss out on the recent networking receptions in NYC and L.A.? Click here to view pictures from various events at Electronic Retailer’s Buzz page!
Pat Cauley is Electronic Retailer magazine’s eMedia Editor.
Bing One and Bing Two: Double Takes on Microsoft’s New Search Engine
Monday, August 24th, 2009
Microsoft’s new search engine has garnered a lot of media attention as it seeks to directly compete with Google, especially in a time when it seems no one in their right mind seeks to compete with Google.
The giant of the search-engine industry has its fingers in every possible pie, and it’s very rare that it doesn’t come out ahead. So what are Bing’s advantages and disadvantages?
Here’s two ways of gauging its chances of survival:
1. The Product Advantage
Bing is supposed to yield more relevant search results, which may actually sway consumers over to its side. The advantage to advertisers in that relevance is more precise, target marketing, which could change their game plan as well - if, that is, Bing’s searching is in fact superior to Google’s.
The content-driven approach helps sell that relevancy claim, as the system also adds consumer comments and reviews on the search results, e.g. getting customer reviews on a restaurant from services like Yelp.com.
2. The Marketing Advantage
Google has rarely spent money on advertising its own products. Consumers are ready to jump on just about anything that Google puts out, which means that the usual big spenders in a marketing budget are moot - television ads, for example. Microsoft’s Bing may have an advantage here, as the company seems to be willing to pour a near-endless stream of funds into promoting its new product.
It’s not a bad strategy, especially since nothing short of full media saturation is likely to sway loyal Google enthusiasts. Since they have no competition in many of their outlets, it might just give Bing a chance to play with the big boy.
Peter Koeppel is a Wharton MBA and president of Koeppel Direct, a full-service media buying agency based in Dallas.
Net Neutrality Bill Introduced in the House
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Late last week Representatives Markey (D-MA) and Eshoo (D-CA) introduced a bill that would keep the Internet open by preventing Internet service providers (ISPs) from imposing “a charge on any Internet content, service, or application provider to enable any lawful Internet content, application, or service to be offered, provided, or used. In other words, they cannot charge you (as a content provider) more than the cost of service for your lawful content and any lawful applications you make available.
The bill also prevents ISPs from providing or selling any content, application, or service provider any offering that prioritizes traffic over that of other such providers. This addresses concerns that ISPs will sell premium access to some companies, which would have the end result of degrading everyone’s content. This is important to any company that is using video online, but is not interested in paying more than they currently do to ensure the quality of the video is not reduced. It’s not easy to be moved by advertising when the video is pixilated or freezes every three seconds.
Similar bills were introduced in the last two Congresses. However, the larger Democratic majority and President Obama’s stated priority of keeping the Internet open may mean there will be some movement on this bill. However, the House will be in a District Work Period (aka recess) until after Labor Day.
In the meantime, you can watch this video.
For more information on ERA’s government affairs efforts, click here.
Tomi Turner is ERA’s legislative manager.
ERA Minute: Bosley’s George Fettig
Friday, July 31st, 2009Interested in contributing an ERA Minute? Contact Dave Martin at dmartin@retailing.org or (703) 908-1033.Â
ERA’s 2009 D2C Convention Education Tracks
Friday, July 31st, 2009Here’s a sneak peek at what attendees can expect from the education lineup at ERA’s upcoming D2C Convention September 13-15, in Las Vegas.Â
Track One: Direct Response Success
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Track Two: Digital Marketing IntelligenceÂ
Meltzer and Wechsler Jam Out For ERA’s D2C Convention!
Friday, July 31st, 2009Â
Meltzer Media Productions’ Jeff Meltzer jams out with Lockard & Wechsler Direct’s Dick Wechsler. Jeff and Dick will be performing live along with other industry musicians during ERA’s Opening Reception at the D2C Convention in Las Vegas. For more information on the D2C Convention, click here!
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