Americans were mortified by an ad inviting tourists to visit Alaska ‘before you die’ so afraid are they of the ‘D’ word. They could do with a bit of British spirit The right to a life spent in the pursuit of happiness is enshrined in the American Constitution, which may explain why the citizens of […]
Buy one get one free might be popular with customers, but it is harder to design a promotional campaign that truly adds value. Still, much can be done in store and on pack. By Paul Gander Clearly, any campaign has to satisfy the client’s needs for brand-fit, relevance and impact. It must also keep the […]
Marketing is already going through a major transformation thanks to the Net, but a new development is likely to revolutionise consumer Web habits and put an end to the one-way communication so many marketers rely on, says Mark Taylor Speaking at the Internet Advertising Bureau’s Engage Conference two weeks ago, Bill Gates declared: “The future […]
P&G has responded to the success of Cillit Bang by launching a range of Flash ‘power’ cleaners, but is this too little, too late? By Barny Stokes
Black n’ Red notebooks maker John Dickinson got an unusual piece of fan mail this Hallowe’en. The stationery has always been popular with office workers, but apparently it is the notepaper of choice for witches. It would seem, according to Heath Witch of the Haunted Valley (or, as her friends call her, Heather Ward of […]
Marketing Week’s readers are all-too familiar with tales of marketers getting the chop, but this one’s a (black) belter. Art directors, planners and account handlers at direct marketing agency TDA had been pestering copywriter Stuart Richings, who studies traditional Japanese Wado-Ryu karate, to show them his best Jackie Chan impersonation for some time. But rather […]
Carrying the responsibility for a marketing disaster needn’t be the end of a marketer’s career, indeed experience of a crisis can help when looking for another job. All the same, struggling companies are quick to blame marketing when something goes wrong, says David Benady Marketers have an amazing ability to rise phoenix-like from the ashes […]
Ad agencies give the impression they are clued up about the e-revolution with their dedicated ‘digital’ divisions, but the reality is that online marketing is still treated as an afterthought, giving rise to criticism that marketers have lost touch with the internet generation. By Nathalie Kilby Developments in the digital arena are already dizzyingly fast, […]
A Harvard Business School professor put his finger on it recently when he said: “Google is the realisation of everything that we thought the internet was going to be about but really wasn’t until Google.” Though it’s only about seven years old, it’s already having a bigger impact than earlier established internet business models such […]
Sue Farr’s comment on women in the workplace was spot on (MW last week). Women are a huge asset to a company. And I was interested to read how she managed to accommodate the three most senior members of her team who were having a second child. At LIDA, we also found ourselves in an […]
The WebWorks-owned online DVD and CD retailer Play.com has poached HMV head of e-commerce, Stuart Rowe, as its new managing director. Rowe left HMV earlier this year after 13 years with the high-street retailer, but has been on extended “gardening leave”. He has now started with Play.com and plans to review the company’s operations across […]
Music publishing company EMI has signed a deal with Morrisons to sell a range of items that feature lyrics of songs owned by the record company. It marks the start of a strategy for the record company to exploit the ancillary rights to the songs that it owns. The company has promoted Jonathan Channon, the […]
Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) is broadcasting the first viewer-led interactive drama series this Friday, before it is aired on television networks. Called Dubplate Drama, it will run over a six-week period on PSP, Channel 4, E4 and MTV. All episodes will have their world premier via the PSP, while the TV version will premier on […]
Great North Eastern Railway (GNER) is reviewing its £2m planning and buying business.
Vodafone is confident that next month will be a “3G Christmas” following the launch of its mobile television service. But a new survey suggests customers aren’t as enthused by the concept as the network hopes. The mobile phone giant has teamed up with BSkyB to offer its 250,000 3G subscribers 19 channels, including Sky News, […]