So there we were on a day trip to the Isle of Wight ticking off one of Ollie's five things we must do on holiday this year (cow, horse, tractor, boat, train - this one being boat) and as we walked along Sandown sea front, I saw this - an AdiZone. An outdoor, free sport/fitnessContinue reading "the adizone brand experience"
the new integration
Right now, there's a lot of talk out there about integration being dead. Almost as much talk as there is about social media, the death of the ad agency - and the Old Spice viral. But I think it's all nonsense. Find out why and discover some simple truths by reading this 'New Integration' thoughtContinue reading "the new integration"
a new me, aka personal branding
So, a new job and time for a spruce up of the blog header and Twitter background. Rather than attempt to bugger it up myself, I had much help from the very lovely and very talented Laura Rees. Thank you Laura, you are ace. Find more about Laura on her blog, Twitter or her portfolioContinue reading "a new me, aka personal branding"
long term association trumps massive sponsorship spunk. and stickers win.
In amongst all the frenzied reporting about who out-tweeted who at the World Cup, what's really caught my eye is who won out when it came to the brand association with football. Any student of marketing will tell you that branding is about the long-term and this is borne out by the Engage Research butContinue reading "long term association trumps massive sponsorship spunk. and stickers win."
getting it culturally right
Unilever brand Vaseline has launched a Facebook application that allows users to change their skin tone by lightening it. Inevitably there are some that are getting upset by this. But there'll always be the negative voices out there; one of the joys/pains of the interweb. I'll be honest and tell you I was completely obliviousContinue reading "getting it culturally right"
we are people, not just consumers of social media
Yes, there’s a lot of noise about social media and yes, it is very exciting and yes, the social specialists are forcing other agencies to up their game in the space. But it’s rare that a social media campaign works extraordinarily well in isolation. Social media should only really become relevant if viewed as partContinue reading "we are people, not just consumers of social media"
cognitive surplus
Last night I went to listen to the illustrious Clay Shirky give a free (yes, free!) talk on his new book, Cognitive Surplus, at the RSA in hot and sweaty London town. Although the sound wasn't great, Clay's words kept dropping out of my earshot at least, this is my simple summation of wtf CognitiveContinue reading "cognitive surplus"
some stuff and things that caught my eye
Some people ask what's the point of Twitter? For me it's part information source, part staying in touch with friends and colleagues and part sharing bits of my life. I've found these things of late, I thought you might like them too... Your handwriting as a font. Notepad - a virtual piece of paper inContinue reading "some stuff and things that caught my eye"
guerilla marketing used to be celebrated, now you get arrested
The World Cup 2010. Massive amounts of media dollars spent by a few big brands wanting to associate themselves with the beautiful game and getting some exclusive media rights to the tournament. For every other brand the challenge is to punk them without the need to be an official sponsor. Nike have pretty much doneContinue reading "guerilla marketing used to be celebrated, now you get arrested"
social media opportunities & threats
Resource, control, senior stakeholder support. The key threats of social media as viewed by a selection of UK senior marketers in this IDM download. The disturbing thing is that these threats are easily overcome. Social is no longer a fad, the case studies are out there of the huge impact it can have to amplifyContinue reading "social media opportunities & threats"
