Valleywag
social networks
Posts Tagged “
Marketing
”
social networks
marketing
Pity the Microsoft marketers who made this video
Compared to say, used car dealers or ambulance chasing lawyers, pitches from Microsoft marketers come off as sophisticated and subtle. But compared to Apple's Steve Jobs, arguably one of the best product pitchmen of a generation, Microsoft's marketing comes off as tone deaf and out of touch. So anytime Microsoft puts out a video like the one embedded below — a bizarre commercial for Microsoft Touch, now installed at Las Vegas's Rio — some snarky blogger will happily point out all its flaws. Like how the men in the commercial seem cast from a Henry Nicholas pool party and the women from a cargo ship container full of eastern Europeans. So when you watch the clip below and the woman tells the man "You're so hot. Got Sunscreen?" and he responds: "Let's chill," please have pity and don't laugh too hard at Redmond's unluckiest. More »
clips
"Daily Show"-style LinkedIn video schools Yahoo on product marketing
In case our "idiot's guide to fixing Yahoo" wasn't clear enough on Yahoo's need for a clearerproduct strategy, here's a clip from LinkedIn that might serve as an example. Sure, it's cheesy, but skip to 2:40 and suddenly you've got customers explaining to viewers what LinkedIn is to them and why its crucial that they use it. When's the last time anyone's said that about Yahoo? Not to mention that LinkedIn's VP of marketing, Patrick Crane, came to the company from Yahoo.
online advertising
Like developers, marketers also unhappy about Facebook redesign
Ian Schafer, CEO of marketing agency Deep Focus, got to play around with a redesigned version of his Facebook profile and has this bad news for social media marketers to report: More »
marketing
Neil Young versus the bloggers at JavaOne
As part of Neil Young's appearance at Sun's JavaOne conference, groups of hacks were herded into a conference room to ask questions of the aging rock legend, presumably about how awesome Java is, but I think the plan is that Java is just awesome because Young says so, and he trotted out an expansive interactive discography powered by the Java functionality built into Sony's Blu-ray hardware and a clean car project with telemetrics powered by Sun-sponsored software. Because I doubt there's anything baby boomer executives and the formerly flannel-shirted Gen-X set they spawned like more than getting the most out of their cars and home theater systems. Except maybe hearing Young pontificate on the virtues of an all-analog recording process. More »
social networks
Facebook's "Guide to Viral Marketing," minus 7,433 words
What's in Facebook's "Insider's Guide to Viral Marketing?" "Really nothing compelling," social media marketer Alisa Leonard tells us. "They basically expanded their online step by step business page sign up process and made understanding [Facebook] pages idiot proof (read: CMO-proof)." The reason why Facebook is pushing Facebook Pages: They're a key advertising feature whose launch was obscured by the privacy fracas over Beacon last fall. What would really have made it friendly to chief marketing officers: Trimming it down from 7,533 words. We've embedded the whole thing below, but first, read a 100-word version that could fit in your Facebook News Feed. More »
apple
An annual marketing survey rated Apple the No. 1 brand that consumers can't live without — a spot usually won by Coca-Cola. The computer maker also was cited as the most inspiring brand. Google also featured highly on the survey, but no other tech companies made the cut. No surprise there: Does anyone really think Oracle or SAP are inspiring?
More »
The brand that people can't live without? It ain't Yahoo
An annual marketing survey rated Apple the No. 1 brand that consumers can't live without — a spot usually won by Coca-Cola. The computer maker also was cited as the most inspiring brand. Google also featured highly on the survey, but no other tech companies made the cut. No surprise there: Does anyone really think Oracle or SAP are inspiring?More »
terrorists
Al Qaeda best viral marketers on Web
How bad do you want to go viral on the Web? Al Qaeda bad? Because I hear the fundamentalist-Islamic terrorist group is the best around at spreading by word of mouse. This according to Gabriel Weimann, professor of communications at the University of Haifa in Israel. Weinman monitors 5,800 militant Islamist sites, and he's got bad news about the terrorists' ability to market themselves on the Web. More »
marketing
At last, Google gets a brand man
It's a dilemma for Google: It spends very little on advertising, preferring to let its products speak for themselves (and leaving its marketing chief, David Lawee, without much of a job). And why not, since that's given it the world's most cost-effective brand. But that has left the company tone-deaf in speaking to Madison Avenue, since it hardly practices what it preaches. Finally, as I've advised for ages, Google has hired a brander-in-chief, Ogilvy & Mather's Andy Berndt. More »
junk food
Care for a frypod with that shake?
What red-blooded American child wouldn't rather have nice, healthy apple slices in a frybox than the warm, salty bits of FAT that they're used to? Burger King, doing its best to be a good corporate citizen and fight the good fight against obesity, is offering this new snack in a "frypod." Better question: which marketing consultant decided that evoking "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" in a snack would make it more appealing?
marketing
The troubled online universe isn't dead yet, claims the gullible Hollywood Reporter. The Tinseltown trade, spun like a top by Second Life creator Linden Lab's denial campaign, reports on a marketing "success" story. Brand agency This Second Marketing employed virtual street teams in Second Life to promote the 3D Imax version of the latest Harry Potter movie. After 840 hours of handing out digital tchotchkes and evangelizing the flick, the team managed to reach 15,099 avatars. This only sounds impressive to Hollywood scribblers who can't do simple math. More »
Second Life's extremely virtual success story
The troubled online universe isn't dead yet, claims the gullible Hollywood Reporter. The Tinseltown trade, spun like a top by Second Life creator Linden Lab's denial campaign, reports on a marketing "success" story. Brand agency This Second Marketing employed virtual street teams in Second Life to promote the 3D Imax version of the latest Harry Potter movie. After 840 hours of handing out digital tchotchkes and evangelizing the flick, the team managed to reach 15,099 avatars. This only sounds impressive to Hollywood scribblers who can't do simple math. More »
marketing
Vista flunks the marketing test
PAUL BOUTIN — Microsoft's next-generation Windows hits the stores in less than two weeks, but for all its whizzy features it's got less buzz than a new dental plan. What's a techie to do? Blame marketing! Start with the scare-quoted "Wow" slogan. After the jump, Vista's campaign report card, plus photos from the Vista tour bus. More »
silicon valley users guide
SVUG #17: Do I need a PR firm?
PAUL BOUTIN — Hiring a publicist is the traditional route to the media attention you need to attract customers and business partners. But are a half dozen press clips a year worth $10,000 a month? Maybe instead of pitching the tech press, you should be flooding the zone on Google. SVUG's pull-out guide to search engine optimization after the jump. More »
wifi
Blogger breakdown: How to get buzz
- The skeptic at Dead 2.0 asks Valley vets whether a blogger can become a media star. VC Paul Kedrosky says, "media businesses are generally crappy businesses, with rare obvious exceptions." [Dead 2.0]
- Om Malik notes that small towns can get municipal wifi too — especially when one router on Main Street can reach the town limits. [GigaOM]
- Tech biz writer Eric Sink explains how to market a product. Simple advice like "go for the niche" and "don't spam the top bloggers," which some marketers still need to be told. [Eric Sink]
- Clearing out your hard drive after the RIAA charges you for file-sharing, and you could automatically lose your case. [Internet Cases]
- Did you know that the startup sound in Windows Vista is a hot-button issue? Now that you do, has a small part of you died? [Scobleizer]
seth godin
