Vancouver Marketing Consultant Andrea Coutu's Blog

Constant Contact spamming Google?

General Marketing

2008-01-24 19:23:31

Constant Contact, an online campaign management service company, may be ~~spamming Google~~ "obviously actively trying to own rankings for their name", according to Darren Barefoot. Apparently, Constant Contact has set up several domains to redirect to their site. Is this spamming? Should it be considered spamming? The challenge is that Constant Contact may argue that people legitimately enter those URLs. I wouldn't try setting up several domains like that, but I can see how their IT or marketing teams could make a case for "legitimately" having several URLs.

Handvertising -- advertising on hands

General Marketing

2007-10-23 14:25:51

Via my inbox, I received a news release on something called "handvertising". According to HandvertisingUSA:

Handvertising USA is transforming the way advertisers are looking at your skin, more specifically your hands. "Almost everyone has been to a county fair, swap meet, bar or club and had had their hand stamped for proof of entry. We have found a better use for this space that could make everyone happy" said Mike Brown, CEO of the company.

From generating awareness to drumming up business by offering discounts, companies can use advertising on skin to drum up support, according to Brown.

It sounds like a bizarre idea to me. But, in a world where young people no longer listen to the radio, watch TV in real time or take part in mass media, this sort of marketing may just work. It's the reason that ambush marketing and stealth marketing have become tactics of choice for advertisers targeting youth.

Marketing consultant -become a consultant

General Marketing

2007-05-06 18:44:56

Become a marketing consultant -- if you're interested in becoming a marketing consultant, I'd like to refer you to my Become a Consultant blog at Consultant Journal. I'm inundated with requests for advice from people who want to become marketing consultants. Because I don't have time to provide individual responses, I decided to share my knowledge via a blog. Feel free to get involved by leaving comments on the Consultant Journal site.

Soapopular doesn't want me to buy Soapopular soap

General

2007-03-12 19:33:57

Almost two months ago, a neighbour showed me her Soapopular foaming hand sanitizer, which is alcohol-free. She told me she had bought the Soapopular soap at Shoppers Drug Mart. I trekked to three or four Shoppers stores, as well as a few other department stores, but couldn't find the product. The Soapopular website's front page clearly notes that the product is available at Shoppers.

So I emailed Soapopular. After about a month (!), I received a very brief email telling me I could buy the product at Zellers. Since the nearest Zellers is a long way from my home (and not on my usual list of stores to visit), I emailed back and asked if it was available at any other stores.

I've heard nothing and it's been a week or two.

This kind of response to a customer inquiry is appalling. I took the time to go to several stores, visit their expensive website, and send an email. At this point, Soapopular should be so keen to get my business that they send a free sample! I mean, how many leads are this hot?

But, nope, Soapopular gets it all wrong. They ignore me. They don't value my business and obviously don't understand the value of a lead or word-of-mouth referrals. And, unfortunately for Soapopular, I'm now expressing my dissatisfaction in a public forum.

If you're going to spend the money to develop and market a consumer product, take the time to treat customer inquiries seriously. Otherwise, don't even try.

Want some free advice?

General

2007-02-16 02:21:12

I get a ton of emails from students and new consultants who want to know if I can help them become a marketing consultant. Some people even work in other fields, like graphic design or even IT consulting. I do not have time to respond to these requests. However, I do run Become a Consultant Blog at ConsultantJournal.com. That site has tons of free information about consulting.

BC Place roof collapses for second time

General

2007-01-05 18:11:10

BC Place's roof has collapsed for a second time. Back in the 1980s, the host of a CBC TV show called Switchback caused a bit of an uproar when he showed footage of the domed roof deflating. Of course, it was later revealed that Switchback was playing the inflation of the dome backwards. Nice hoax. But, this time around, it would be pretty tough to fake a big tear in the roof

Guy's night out

General

2006-12-05 18:41:14

While shopping at Park Royal Village this weekend, I noticed that Lulu Lemon was advertising a "guys' shopping night". Snacks, sports, drinks and gift wrapping. It sounds like a great way to lure guys into a small shop full of spandex-like clothing -- somewhere you wouldn't normally find men. Clever target marketing.

Interested in consulting?

General

2006-11-20 00:51:38

Every week, I receive emails from people who want to become consultants. They often ask to meet with me so that they can learn about the success I've had as an independent consultant. Because of my success -- on both the business and family front -- I don't have time to meet with people any more. However, I believe in sharing my knowledge with the community. So I created ConsultantJournal.com. If you want to learn how to become a consultant, check it out.

Vancouver cafe understands marketing

General

2006-10-27 17:10:28

The Blue Edge Organic Cafe in Coal Harbour really understands marketing. The Blue Edge has a good understanding of its target market and has created a whole product to meet the needs of that market.

Situated at the foot of Nicola Street, adjacent to the Coal Harbour Community Centre, the cafe has stunning views of the marina and mountains. It also showcases local art works. But the most noticeable thing about the Blue Edge Cafe is its child-friendly atmosphere. The Cafe's owners obviously recognize the draw of the community centre. Parents and tots attend parent-infant drop-ins, toddler playtimes, kids' activities and other family activities. With the Blue Edge Cafe just next-door, it's obvious where coffee-starved moms are going to head. So the cafe has several high chairs, a kids' menu and an expansive play area, complete with toys and a toddler-sized table. With these features, the Cafe doesn't need to do much to advertise. Parents inevitably tell other parents about the wonders of the cafe.

It's interesting that other downtown cafes and restaurants haven't caught-on. Earls recently went to the media to say that kids aren't welcome in their restaurants. But why don't more restaurants target families? With three schools packed to capacity and a fourth due to open in the next couple of years, the downtown peninsula could accommodate a few more kid-friendly restaurants. Perhaps a few more shops and restaurants will re-evaluate their strategies. Not every restaurant or cafe need welcome kids and their parents, but you'd think a few could see the strategic value in it.

Ads on this blog

General

2006-10-26 01:37:54

After much debate, I've decided to introduce ads on this blog. The content of this blog falls outside that of my general marketing consulting site. Most of the people reading it are interested in the blog content, as opposed to marketing consulting services. So I see this as separate from the rest of the website. Moreover, with the thousands and thousands of visits I'm receiving, it makes sense to offset some of the costs. That being said, if you read my blog posts on the main Vancouver Marketing Consulting Blog page or scroll through my full blog, you won't see ads. You'll only see them if you visit the page for an individual article (such as this one). That way, most of the people seeing ads are people coming in through search engines, not regular readers.

Don't forget your name

General

2006-10-26 01:33:23

Today, I was in a mall. Someone had put up a new poster, outlining the many dishes available at a new restaurant. The poster included pictures of all the foods, along with prices. But there was no restaurant name or any suggestion of where one could partake of these delicacies! Make sure you include your business name and other important details in your promotions. Stealth marketing has its merits, but I don't think that's quite the same thing.

Marketing Headhunter Blog

General

2006-09-16 01:40:46

While cruising the web today, I found Marketing Headhunter Blog. Regardless of whether you're looking for a job in marketing or not, the site has a lot of industry news and tips that can help you build your marketing career.

Back in action

General

2006-09-16 01:39:25

After a hiatus that was far too long, I'm back at blogging again. I'll be updating this site on a more regular basis, although not quite as often as I was before my injury.

Slow down in posting frequency

General

2006-05-29 23:43:05

Just a quick note to say that I'll be posting less frequently than normal for the next little while, due to an injury. I had to decide between continuing with my marketing consulting for Vancouver and blogging for the world.

Vancouver's Robson|Granville Future Shop billboard

General Marketing

2006-05-23 00:57:21

Have you seen the new digital billboards in Vancouver on the Future Shop building at Robson and Granville? The City of Vancouver changed the billboard bylaw about two years ago, allowing digital billboards in Vancouver. Vancouver's no Times Square, but these new billboards may mark a shift in the way Vancouverites receive marketing messages.

Paul McCartney -- When I'm 64 Divorce

General

2006-05-17 23:29:07

Paul McCartney and Heather Mills have called it quits. But what interests me isn't the divorce or the personal lives of these heavily marketed celebrities. I'm shocked that the media hasn't sold the When I'm 64 angle:

Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty four?

McCartney turns 64 a month from tomorrow.

Buffett calls housing bubble

General

2006-05-07 20:59:09

Are we in a housing bubble"? Warren Buffett has called a housing bubble. Speaking at the 2006 Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting, Buffet said:

"What we see in our residential brokerage business ... is a slowdown everyplace, most dramatically in the formerly hottest markets....The day traders of the Internet moved into trading condos...We've had a real bubble to some degree. I would be surprised if there aren't some significant downward adjustments, especially in the higher end of the housing market."

Vancouver Housing Market Blog is a Vancouver blog that has been talking about a housing bubble for months. I could be wrong, but I think the $600 per square foot prices at the W are a sign that something's wrong. Who's going to pay $3000 a month to rent a 2BR on East Hastings? A lot of people want to escape suburbia, but they can do that for $1500 over in the West End or even Yaletown.

Reader's Digest decoder card

General

2006-05-05 00:17:25

Do you have a Reader's Digest decoder card? I just received an email from someone who needs one for a scavenger hunt. I received one a few months ago as part of a direct mail campaign. Unfortunately, I recycled it a few days ago. If you have one, please let me know and I'll pass along your details. The scavenger hunt supports a deserving Vancouver charity.

Bodybreak's Hal Johnson & Joanne McLeod vs Dr Phil

General Marketing

2006-05-03 01:08:56

Is anyone as annoying as Dr. Phil and his wife Robin? Apparently the Body Break couple could use a break. "Canada's answer to Dr. Phil would have to be Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod," writes Shannon McKinnon in the Williams Lake Tribune (Google cache of Bodybreak article.)

McKinnon accuses the Bodybreak duo -- Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod -- of "popping up, uninvited, to interrupt our otherwise perfectly slothful evenings".Give us a break from Bodybreak, pleads McKinnon. "I watch them to see if they're getting fat...What would happen if they did let themselves go? Say Joanne put on a couple hundred pounds and Hal turned into an alcoholic?...I think I would like them better."

Could the Bodybreak couple be teetering on marketing disaster, about to suffer the fate of Canadian Tire Guy? As the Most Irritating Canadian, Canadian Tire Guy has suffered the fate of a cancelled campaign. But I doubt we'll see the Bodybreak marketing dynasty fade away anytime soon. They've built an empire since their Participaction funding first arrived -- they've branded everything from food to treadmills. And they've surely fine-tuned their grant-writing proposals and government negotiation skills. Johnson and McLeod are here to stay, assuming they don't start chowing down on cheeseburgers!

Canada wordmark and trademark protection

General

2006-04-27 00:34:41

Canada's wordmark needs protection, according to the Treasury Board of Canada. The Treasury Board works hard at protecting trademarks of Canada. As I've mentioned before, trademark owners need to protect their intellectual property.

The Government of Canada is no different from any other trademark owner. The Canada wordmark conveys a trusted brand. If the government were to allow just anyone to use or compromise that image, the Canada brand would suffer. It's similar to the Olympic trademark issues faced by the Vancouver Olympic Committee.

Canada is pretty clear about its trademark guidelines, having produced a full manual, policy and other materials. When I worked for Citizenship and Immigration's Communications Branch, an in-house graphic designer gave me a full briefing on use of the Crown's marks. Signs, stationery, marketing materials -- the government has a policy for everything.

But it's not just the government that comes up with intellectual property guidelines. Most of the mid-sized firms for which I've worked have had trademark and logo usage guidelines -- and I've been charged with managing those properties. You'd think managing a logo is easy, but it's always a challenge to keep people from making small changes that add up. For example, your corporate trainer may add a graduation cap to the mascot in your corporate logo. The trainer passes this logo to the technical writer, who adds a shield and a witty slogan. Although it's great to see people taking ownership of the corporate image, it's important to standardize and, above all else, protect those assets so that they can stand up in any legal disputes with external users of your logo. It comes down to finesse and communication, all in the name of trademark protection.

Toni Onley's house for sale

General

2006-04-22 01:41:16

The house of the late Toni Onley is on the market...and real estate agents are trumpeting the connection to Toni Onley. Onley's house listing (V583367) on MLS and other sites makes the connection clear.

At first glance, it might seem tacky to mention the artist so blatantly. But a closer look at the beautiful home makes it easy to see how it would have inspired Onley. I think the home has probably been staged to make the furnishings a bit less intimate. Still, the kind of buyer who feels a connection to Onley's art probably would see this as a true home and not as mere investment..perhaps pumping up the value of the home, in a roundabout way.

Olympia Restaurant Vancouver’s trademark dispute

General Marketing

2006-04-17 21:08:17

Olympia Restaurant is embroiled in a trademark battle with the Vancouver Olympic Committee. Olympia Restaurant’s sign and logo use flames, rings and a torch, elements that also appearch in trademarks of the Olympics.

The Canadian Olympic Committee has trademarks going back several years -- 1985, 1995, and so on. For 20 years, the Olympic Committee has had a trademark on the Olympic torch. When I did a search before (having now forgotten the parameters), I was able to dig up trademark materials from the early 1970s.

I am not a lawyer. But it seems to me that Olympia Restaurant is in the wrong. The petition from Olympia Restaurant suggests that VANOC wants the eatery to discontinue use of the flames, rings and torch because:

the public will be led to believe that the Olympia's services have been endorsed by the COC or are somehow connected to the 2010 winter games.

As a trademark owner, VANOC must protect the assets of the Olympic Games Association. I discussed the reasons for protecting your trademarks in a previous post. VANOC has no choice but to enforce its intellectual property rights.

Again, I’m not a lawyer. But I think Olympia Restaurant’s owners know they’re wrong. For them, the trademark dispute may pose an opportunity to gain media exposure. Just look at all the Olympia Restaurant press. Forget the cost of winning a legal battle – no small restaurant could afford to buy that media coverage. The media (and the public) loves stories about underdogs. Expect to hear more about Olympia Restaurant’s logo battles as we approach 2010.

VANOC and ambush marketing

What is Viral Marketing and the Barcadi Liver Ad

General

2006-04-15 03:18:17

What is Viral Marketing? Viral marketing is what marketers use to gain publicity through existing social networks. Achieved through word-of-mouth contact, viral marketing spreads quickly -- like a virus.

Right now, Bacardi Live Radio is hot on the viral marketing scene, as rum and music fans forward news of the site to one another. Cool idea, but bad name. I saw "Barcadi Liver Ad" until I got to the I in the URL.

My Previous Viral Marketing Posts

I Listen to Jack FM - Viral Marketing or Not

Starbucks Coffee Cup Viral Marketing

Bumvertising Viral Marketing

Pokerfacebook Viral Marketing

Beware the Heat Viral Marketing

Subversive Marketing

Business Trends for 2005

Hockey Strikes Sends Advertisers Scrambling

Vancouver Olympics Ambush Marketing

Moolatte

Breakeven calculators

Strategy

2006-04-12 00:09:56

Knowing your breakeven point can help you set a price for your products. This breakeven calculator from Case Western University simplifies the process -- just enter costs, quantities and prices and let the online calculator do the work for you.

Funny catalog copy

General Marketing

2006-04-11 01:22:15

Bowls for dieters seem like a pretty good idea. Studio Panepinto has some cool bowls for sale. The portion-specific dishes usually come as a set, but you can also buy them as singles. I got a chuckle out of the caption, though:

"Singles come in sets of two."

Vancouver marketing and communication

General Marketing

2006-04-09 22:20:21

In Vancouver, several companies offer marketing and communications services. Upon closer examination, these companies turn out to be advertising, PR, graphic design, web or copywriting firms. And that's great if you're looking for a communications company. But marketing means more than just marketing communications. True marketing involves connecting buyers to sellers. Yet, because of their specific expertise and positioning, many "marketing companies" push customers to put together ads, brochures, websites, press releases and other promotional materials -- before they even have their marketing in order.

As I say on my website, most marketers are skewed toward communications and sales. And sales and communications are important parts of the marketing mix. If you've covered your 4P's -- product, price, promotions and place -- then it's okay to start working with a communications company. Unfortunately, a lot of companies start up and hire a graphic design firm, ad agency or direct mail outfit right away. This is often because there's a push to show senior management that marketing dollars are going to something tangible.

But those marketing dollars should be going to support a sustainable return on investment, based on developing profitable relationships with the right customers. Having a great-looking direct mailer, brochure or website won't save you if you're going after the wrong customers.

For example, a few years ago, I worked with a company that had ear-marked $100,000 for marketing. The company was spending a fortune on mailing brochures to healthcare professionals. But when I examined their marketing needs, I determined that most buying decisions in this industry were made by people in another department. And, more importantly, those buyers worked with big medical sales agents, which could offer a wide variety of products. Drawing from my experience with the full marketing mix, I worked out a marketing plan to help the company distribute its products through sales agents, develop programs to help hospital buyers make decisions, and come up with marketing campaigns that would lead healthcare professionals to influence those hospital buyers. Today, the company sells a huge proportion of its products through sales agencies.

Numeracy and a business-oriented approach help too. One company asked me to help them with their direct mail campaigns. I pointed out that, because their graphic designer had opted for heavy "durable" card stock for the one-page product sheets, it was costing up to $7 to send a set of product sheets to prospective clients. By changing the product sheets and opting for new stock, I helped the company free up money for value-added marketing activities.

Marketing and communication companies can play an important role in bringing your products and services to market. But, before you sign a contract, consider whether your full marketing needs are being met. You should be opting for value-added marketing decisions that help you achieve a positive ROI -- not just producing brochures and websites, so it looks like you're getting something done.

Consultant Email Marketing Vancouver Advice

General Marketing

2006-04-09 21:26:31

Ideas for email marketing from a Vancouver marketing consultant.

Email marketing tips can help your marketing programs stand out. People like to buy from people they know, like and trust. The trick with email marketing is to make your marketing campaign work hard to build the tenets of that relationship.

To build credibility through copywriting, marketers use several techniques:

Straight-forward language – tell it like it is. People don’t trust jargon.

Back up your points. Link your company’s accomplishments to its promises.

Note awards, ratings, rankings and press on your company. Trusted third parties do more to build your credibility than your own statements ever can.

Provide testimonials from your customers, partners and the media. People are more likely to trust you if other people are willing to put their name beside yours.

Show your track record. Tell people how many customers and products you have. Note how many years you’ve been in business.

Tie in internal statistics. If you still have your first customer, still sell your original product, or just signed your 5000th customer, let people know.

Next time, I’ll point out how marketers build credibility through graphic design.

Marketing and Direct Mail Articles

How to send email without spamming

Tell me, don’t sell me: consumers hate marketing

Marketing means more than marketing communications

To market a product, build the product

Distribution key to marketing success

Pushing buttons in the buyer's brain

Measuring the value of marketing

Vancouver direct mail example

Marketing Resources

My marketing services and qualifications.

Before & After Model Magazine Retouch

General Marketing

2006-03-31 01:05:11

Magazine photos of models retouched in Photoshop -- maybe you've heard of them. Via Lisa Manfield, my long-time client, comes this before and after reveal of a mock magazine cover.

I asked her about the reveal. "I think it's great that someone has taken the time to really showcase what goes on behind the lens in magazine photo retouching," says Manfield. "Too many people take what they see on magazine covers at face value, and it helps to see what the reality truly is." Manfield is the vice-president of the BC Association of Magazine Publishers, former editor of Realm Magazine, and a contributing editor to Backbone Magazine.

As for me, magazine photo retouching is old news. My university textbooks had examples and I certainly saw some clever edits when I worked in publishing. And the Jamie Lee Curtis spread from a few years ago was interesting. But this is the first time I've seen a step-by-step account on the web. If you've seen other examples, let me know.

Consultant blog provides business boost

Technology Adoption

2006-03-28 22:51:11

Consultants have much to gain from blogging for business. Calgary's Rhona-Mae Arca is a great example. After much encouragement (nagging) from me, Arca added a blog to the website for her music consulting business, Musespeak.

Six months later, she's increased her website traffic -- "I had to upgrade my web hosting program for more bandwidth!" She's also achieved first-place and top five listings for targeted keywords in search engines. She adds that the blog forces her to write regularly -- "and gives me something to look forward to doing, unlike bookkeeping." She adds that writing a regular blog "keeps me on my toes", since she has to stay on top of developments in her field.

You might not think of piano teachers as being first movers when it comes to technology. But Arca is proof that using a blog to help support and implement your marketing strategy can deliver real business rewards. I, too, was skeptical about business blogs once upon a time, but fortunately changed my mind.

Wal-Mart Brady Bunch Ad Jingle

General Marketing

2006-03-27 02:03:05

Brady Bunch - Wal-Mart commercial song. Wal-Mart's got a new TV ad series that features a cover of the hit 70s "Time to Change" song by the Brady Brunch. If you've long forgotten the song that launched the Brady Six to stardom, here's a refresher from the chorus:

When it's time to change (when it's time to change),
Don't fight the tide, go along for the ride,
Don't ya see.
When it's time to change, you've got to rearrange,
Who you are and what you're gonna be.
Sha na na na na na na na na
Sha na na na na.
Sha na na na na na na na na na
Sha na na na na

You can listen to a sample here. Inspired by the success of the Partridge Family and other real family supergroups, the Brady Brunch's producers hatched a plan to launch "Greg" as a teen idol backed by the Brady Six. I vaguely recall Greg was known as Johnny Bravo, but I'm reaching waaaay back here.

So what's the deal with Wal-Mart? Why the Brady song? Well, the song dates back to the early 1970s and the Brady Brunch is a Generation X favourite. If you were six in 1972, then you're about the right age to have a six-year-old of your own. If you're a little younger than that, you may have fond memories of re-runs. If you're a little older than that, you were a teen during the Brady Bunch's heyday and you probably have a teen. So you may associate the song with memories of your own childhood. If your child is the same age as you were back then, it's easier to associate them with the song...and find yourself shopping at Wal-Mart. The song brings the "Every boy's a man inside, / A girl a woman too" lines to life, since those young Brady Bunch watchers grew up.

But the ad should resonate with younger viewers, too. If you're an American kid, you probably watch re-runs of the Brady Bunch on Nick at Night, so you might be more willing to put up with your mom's "sha na na na na na". You might have seen one of the Brady Bunch movies on TV, underscoring the "Time to Change" episode where Peter's voice broke during the recording. So now you can bond with your parents over a cheesy jingle.

But will it work? Well, I don't live near a Wal-Mart. But I do seem to have great recall of the ad and all its implications. I imagine it's creating some goodwill for the brand. And Wal-Mart's going organic, so the fresh-faced 70s retro image works.

Alexander Keith's beer character arrested

General Marketing

2006-03-13 01:32:07

The man who plays the mutton-chopped, ale-obsessed Scot in the Alexander Keith's beer commercials has been arrested on charges of child pornography. Robert Norman Smith was allegedly caught in an undercover police sting involving people who were downloading child pornography from the Internet.

The accused is innocent until proven guilty. However, Keith's parent company, Labbatt's, has severed ties with the actor and pulled its media spots. This underscores the challenges of creating a strong brand affiliation via an advertising character. Although an advertising character can lend a human element to the brand, it also ties the brand to that human. When that character makes human mistakes, the brand can suffer. In some cases, this forces a company to abandon its advertising campaigns. In recent times, we've seen companies dump the Dell dude, Kate Moss, and other actors. But Ronald McDonald and Mr. Clean live on. It helps to have a character that seems human without truly being human. No one would recognize Ronald McDonald without his make-up. And Mr. Clean probably sports a full head of hair. But, more than anything, luck helps. And, fortunately for most companies, most people -- whether advertising characters or not -- tend to stay out of major trouble. But, nevertheless, companies need to be certain they can weather the storm of criminal allegations. Advertising and branding are tremendous investments that can fall apart in an instant.

Canadian Tire Guy's divorce and forced retirement

General Marketing

2006-03-09 15:34:18

The Canadian Tire Guy is gone. Canadian Tire has dropped him their campaigns. According to the Globe, the Canadian Tire Guy -- Ted -- and his wife -- Gloria -- will no longer show up in ads. Am I the only one who didn't know these characters had names?

As regular readers know, I've written about the Canadian Tire Guy's secret life, tendency to annoy me, and role as an irritating Canadian. In fact, "Canadian Tire Guy" is one of the top searches that lands people on my site. Well, woe is me, the Canadian Tire Guy is no more. Canadian Tire says the ads were wearing on viewers.

But what became of Canadian Tire Guy and Gloria? I suspect it was their Canadian Tire addiction that led to their demise. I mean, how could any couple survive with those kinds of credit card bills? Not to mention that they never discussed purchases. Ted was always surprising Gloria with his latest tent, Mastercraft flashlight or generator. In turn, Gloria always had some Motomaster gadget hiding in a closet. Those sorts of secrets and financial pressures likely led to a divorce. Or maybe they simply disappeared after declaring bankruptcy. One has to wonder. Although Scrooge and Santa seem to work well together, it's far more difficult when you both spend like Santa.

Coal Harbour Community Centre

General Marketing

2006-03-08 15:06:18

Coal Harbour Community Centre recently merged its website with Vancouver’s West End Community Centre and Barclay Manor. Up till the merger, you could find the Coal Harbour Community Centre simplying by searching for "Coal Harbour" in Google. Now it only comes up if you search for "Coal Harbour Community" or "Coal Harbour Community Centre" – and it’s buried under a site called "West End Community". Over at Yahoo, even “Coal Harbour Community Centre” returns a page for "West End CC", which most people would not recognize as affiliated with Coal Harbour – and the second hit is a PDF, which most people wouldn’t open. MSN doesn’t list the Coal Harbour Community Centre in its first page of hits.

By overhauling your website, you can gain efficiencies, increase awareness, improve navigation and achieve other benefits. But, in doing so, you may affect your search engine rankings. If web users can’t find the site they’re looking for, it doesn’t matter how much time and effort you put into designing a great site. The new Coal Harbour and West End Community Centre website could be better optimized for search engines, without great expense or effort. So, if you’re revamping your website, take search engine rankings into account. It’s easier to design things right the first time than it is to try to regain Google’s attention later.

Incidentally, the official Coal Harbour Community Centre site is here.

I listen to Jack FM - viral marketing or not?

General Marketing

2006-02-21 13:50:45

I listen to Jack FM -- or at least that's what a lot of people claim. The Vancouver radio station's "Show the World You Listen to Jack" campaign has apparently sparked a viral marketing campaign. The contest sees people compete to creatively proclaim that "I listen to Jack". In the past few weeks, I've spotted:

a plane flying over downtown while towing a Jack FM banner
a downtown crane with lights that say Jack FM
a young man parading around downtown with a Jack FM sandwich board
the Jack FM van in high profile locations
several ads for the campaign

Some of the contest entries look legitimate. But perhaps Jack is salting the contest with its own entries and or what might be presumed to be entries. Some of the apparent entries I've listed above seem a little over the top. Who but the radio station itself would go to the trouble of renting a plane or space on a crane when the top prize is just $25,000? Seems like a big outlay for a prize that isn't guaranteed. The lines between viral marketing and corporate marketing may be blurred. It's hard to know. As far as I can tell, there's nothing in the contest entry rules to prevent the radio station from running its own campaigns in tandem with the contest. It may be a viral marketing campaign carefully managed by the company, much like those I've mentioned before: Starbucks, Bumvertising, or Beware the Heat.

Email marketing packages

General Marketing

2006-02-19 15:39:36

Last month's direct marketing package from Readers Digest brought me a flood of email about marketing packages. Many of the people who took the time to write wanted to know how email marketing packages differ from regular mail campaigns. As a follow-up, I'm posting some tips for email marketing packages. My post on how to do email marketing without spamming has some suggestions for complying with PIPEDA. Aside from complying with PIPEDA, I think the biggest mistake email marketers make is doing one-off email marketing campaigns. Every email marketing package should be part of a larger strategy for a company's marketing efforts. A single campaign lacks the power of integrated marketing communications. Prospects don't have the energy to stop and pay attention to a single piece, whether it comes by email or mail. It can take three or more tries before your prospects have true recognition -- let alone recall -- of your marketing efforts, given all the messages they receive. So make sure you integrate your marketing communications, leveraging the investments you've made in developing messages, images, tactics and strategies. A focused, consistent campaign will help your prospects understand and recognize your company and products.

Blenz employees quit, creating PR issues

General Marketing

2006-02-07 18:23:29

Four Blenz employees quit their jobs by posting a "Dear John" letter in the window of the coffee shop, according to BeyondRobson.

While most of the web and blog buzz around town discusses the merits of "stick it to the Man", worker solidarity and indentured servitude, I'm left to wonder about the PR issues this causes for Blenz. With several blogs, aggregators and even Flickr already referencing the post, the story will stick around for a while. But, although the Blenz manager likely got the letter, Blenz Corporate may not be aware of the issue, let alone the fallout. It just goes to show that the immediacy of camera phones, digicams and blogs can create a story that spreads and sticks quickly.

A few years ago, I lodged a complaint about the condition of the Blenz on Denman. The company's VP contacted me to apologize and outlined how the chain and would resolve the issue. Then they offered me a pound of my favourite coffee. I said any dark roast coffee would do. They actually called me to find out *exactly* what blend I preferred. Then they couriered it to me. Their quick response to my concerns made me respect the VP and hold the chain in higher regard.

But a "Dear John" letter written to a store manager and not the company is a different issue. I'd be interested to hear if Blenz says anything. The best thing to do is probably to let it blow over. Why create more coverage for a negative event that doesn't involve the corporation so much as a single manager? And it's all allegations, not necessarily facts. I'll be very surprised if Blenz comments on the letter.

Starbucks vs McDonald's for kids

General Marketing

2006-01-31 15:02:46

In my post about coffee cups as billboards, I mentioned that Starbucks is tapping the kids' market. When I was last at Starbucks, I watched several kids down huge hot chocolates, complete with whip and syrup. And I had to wonder about the implications for their health.

Parents have started lobbying fast food chains for healthier alternatives for their kids. Still, McDonald's Happy Meals have fallen out of favour. But if kids are now drinking Starbucks hot chocolate, are they better off? Nope. A McDonald's small hamburger and fries pack 470 calories and 18 grams of fat. However, if you trade the fries for mandarin orange segments, you're now looking at about 250 calories and seven grams of fat. Not exactly health food, but not such a bad choice.

In comparison, a Starbucks hot chocolate has 450 calories and 24 grams of fat. Yikes!

In the age of kids' smoothies, Super Big Gulps, and hot chocolates, I wonder how many parents -- let alone kids -- realize their kids are ingesting the equivalent of entire meals. The fast food chains may be providing alternatives, but parents who'd never given their kids a Happy Meal may be providing the same fare in a cup. Stay tuned for more kiddie drinks at your beverage shops.

Coffee cup as billboard

General Marketing

2006-01-23 01:12:10

Coffee cups and billboards now have something in common. Advertising. Starbucks and Lions Gate Films will turn coffee cups into mini billboards to promote Akeelah and the Bee, an upcoming movie.

Forget Happy Meals, the new generation of movie moguls recognize that parents tow their tots to Starbucks on a regular basis. The coffee shops will feature sneak previews of the movie and employees will have private screenings, in hopes they'll talk up the movie to patrons.

It makes perfect sense. At 10:30 am today, a Sunday, I visited the Granville and Georgia Starbucks with my own tot. Inside, I found eight other tykes and pre-teens with their parents. No wonder movie promoters have headed to Starbucks.

UFile - Quicktax Comparison

Technology Adoption

2006-01-23 00:48:46

Ufile or Quicktax -- I compared these software packages last year at tax time. April's sneaking up on me again and it's time to figure out how I'll do my 2005 taxes. I'm leaning toward working with the accountant I hired last year after a major project put my do-it-yourself accounting plans in flux. Can anyone sway me to use Quicktax or Ufile again? Let me know what packages you'll be using this year.

Vancouver marketing associations

General Marketing

2006-01-21 03:27:52

Vancouver marketing associations help many local marketers ramp up their careers. Since I've received a few requests for information on Vancouver and Lower Mainland marketing associations, I thought I'd post my list here. This is by no means an endorsement of any of the organizations. I simply wanted to provide some resources for Vancouver marketing professionals who want to network, take part in professional education or simply keep abreast of industry trends.

BC American Marketing Association (BCAMA)

International Internet Marketing Association

Vancouver Chinese Advertising, Marketing and Media Association(VCAMMA)

Legal Marketing Associtation

International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) - Vancouver

BC Association of Integrated Marketers

Canadian Public Relations Society - Vancouver CPRS

Sales & Marketing Executives International (SMEI) Vancouver

Association of Internet Marketing & Sales

Canadian Advertising Research Foundation

Canadian Institute of Marketing

The business cost of illiteracy

General

2006-01-21 01:09:14

Today's Globe and Mail (decaying link) offers a story on college graduates who can't read. More than half of students at US colleges and at least three-quarters of students at junior colleges "lack the literacy to handle complex, real-life tasks such as understanding credit card offers". As scary as those results are for colleges, they're even more frightening for North American businesses.

Employees with poor literacy and numeracy skills cost money. They take longer to train because they can't skim reports, training manuals, intranets and other in-house materials. Their inboxes quickly fill up with reports, memos, news releases, whitepapers and other documents key to the company's knowledge base. Lesser literate employees take longer to read materials, find information, complete written tasks -- and even program software.

Moreover, poor literacy often translates into poor writing. Many people simply avoid documenting processes, leaving the company without a knowledge base or a paper trail. The rest of the company suffers when other people have to read the reports and emails written by co-workers with less then stellar literacy skills.

And literacy's just part of the problem. Poor numeracy means employees have trouble deciphering market statistics, financials, forecasts and budgets. The inability to do quick calculations in a meeting or during a sales call can cost a company money, time and credibility.

For companies, this means it's important to check the literacy and numeracy of incoming employees, contract workers and consultants. Some companies administer tests, while others rely on interviews to screen candidates for their ability to think on their feet and quickly digest new information. In any case, businesses need to know they're working with quality people. Otherwise, the bottom line may suffer.

Blooker Prize calls for entrants

General

2006-01-20 01:40:42

Hot on the heels of the Booker Prize comes the Blooker Prize.

According to the folks at self-publisher Lulu.com, a blooker is what you get when you turn a blog into a book.

The prize recognizes blooks in three categories: fiction, non-fiction, and web-comics. The overall winners will receive up to $2,000 -- "in addition to a small piece of literary immortality and something resembling glory in the realm known as the blogosphere," says Susan MacTavish Best, PR rep for Lulu.

The judges will include Cory Doctorow, co-editor of BoingBoing.net, Roblimo Miller of Slashdot.org, and Paul Jones, founder of iBiblio.org.

Yahoo Answers member

General

2006-01-18 17:13:29

As part of my blog, I'll occasionally be answering questions from Yahoo Answers.

Visit Yahoo! Answers

Marketing Plans for Service Businesses

General Marketing

2006-01-18 16:14:48

Looking to grow your service business? Check out Marketing Plans for Service Businesses. Academic press giant Elsevier sent me a copy of the book a few weeks ago. Written by a couple of marketing professors, including a former Canada Dry marketing director, the book takes a practical approach to using marketing to improve the bottom-line for service businesses.

The book is aimed at professional marketing managers, but is probably better suited to MBAs and anyone else accustomed to dry academic materials. This is no "Who Moved My Cheese?" If you're reading this book, you're serious about improving your market orientation and your profits. Still, if you can handle the material, you're well positioned to learn how to improve results.

Advertising rip-offs

General

2006-01-17 22:21:19

Via BoingBoing, here's a French site that compares original ads with knock-offs. Do great minds think alike or do they just tear the same ads out of magazines?

Vancouver Sun phone number

General

2006-01-15 23:44:40

Want The Vancouver Sun phone number? For reasons unknown to me, people keep visiting my site in search of The Vancouver Sun's phone number. You'll find it here.

BC Business Service Centre - Small Business BC

General

2006-01-15 16:16:03

The BC Business Services Centre aka Small Business BC provides a wealth of information for BC, Vancouver and Lower Mainland business owners. Over the years, I've made dozens of trips to the BC Business Services Centre. The Cordova Street offices offer a business library, seminars, coaching and many one-stop business registration resources. Run by Small Business BC, this small business resource has helped thousands of Vancouver companies start up, grow and expand. I've turned to the centre many times for help with both my Vancouver marketing company and my Vancouver marketing consultant clients.

Originally a federal/provincial partnership, Small Business BC is now a non-profit society that makes use of private sector partnerships. Western Economic Diversification Canada and the BC Ministry of Small Businessand Revenue still support the endeavour.

Small business resources in Vancouver

General

2006-01-15 16:06:28

Vancouver small businesses are growing by leaps and bounds. The following small business resources can help you start and grow a Vancouver company. These are just a few of the many information sources for Vancouver firms.

Small Business BC

Small business links from Vancouver Public Library

BC Business Services Society

Canada Business

Small business resources from SUCCESS

Vancouver Public Library Business & Economics Division

Vancouver Economic Development Commission

SBInfoCanada

Vancouver direct mail from Reader's Digest

General Marketing

2006-01-12 20:16:40

So when is an Xpress Post not expressly an Xpress Post?

Today, I received the following envelope (front,back) from Reader’s Digest. I actually received the same mailing last year, but never found the time to blog about it. At first blush, it looks like I’ve received an XpressPost, the kind that Canada Post offers. There’s a big green sticker that makes it look like the envelope passed through a special dispatch office. The Package says “Express Day Timed Delivery”. The envelope offers instructions for CPC, presumably Canada Post Corporation. . The back of the package includes information about mailing restrictions, CPC indicia, addressing, and liability. The liability information refers to section 48 and 49 of the Canada post Corporation Act. The sender is the finance director of Reader’s Digest. An unsuspecting recipient might think that Reader’s Digest had couriered them some sort of financial notice.

My father worked for Canada Post for his entire career. My mother’s been there for more than a decade. If there’s one thing I know, it’s Canada Post. But this isn’t an Canada XpressPost. The top right-hand corner of the mailing reveals that this is Addressed AdMail. That’s right, junk mail addressed to me. All the blurbs about CPC are meant as red herrings. Reader’s Digest is merely printing out Canada Post’s postal guide. The green sticker is just a sticker. All mail is subject to sections 48 and 49 – and all the other sections – of the Canada Post Corporation Act; it’s an offence to interfere with the mail.

Inside, the first thing the reader finds is a blue form marked “STATEMENT”. But a closer look reveals that the statement and enclosed materials -– including a special hologram decoder card –- comprise a mailing for a Reader’s Digest contest.

The first time I received this mailing, I only opened the envelope because I was in awe of the direct mail campaign. (I opened it today so that I could scan the contents for my blog.) This must be one of the most expensive direct mail pieces I’ve ever received. I just had to know what Reader’s Digest thought I’d want from them. But, unfortunately for Reader’s Digest, their money is wasted. I’m not their target market. Their direct mail list is obviously dirty. They need to do some serious database scrubbing, especially given that this is the second time I’ve received the package.

I haven’t heard about this campaign from anyone else, but I imagine it’s a large-scale effort. Reader’s Digest is a master of direct mail. I once attended a lecture where the president of Reader's Digest Canada said that the company is the the business of direct mail lists, not magazines.

(Update: actually, I wrote about this direct mail and forgot about it.)

Direct mail posts

Email marketing tips

Starbucks coffee cup on roof of car

General

2005-12-21 01:51:05

Starbucks strikes again with its red cup campaign for the holiday season. The coffee chain famously serves up beverages in red cups during December. Billboard ads point us to a high tech advent calendar at www.theredcup.com In the US, TV ads follow the plight of red cups and Starbucks has hired taxis to drive around with coffee cups seemingly left on the roof. According to a post on the Flickr photo site, the coffee company has even attached red Starbucks cups to taxis -- the driver says "Happy Holidays from Starbucks" when informed about the cup.

This weekend, while driving across the Lions Gate Bridges, I spotted a Starbucks red cup on the bumper of the truck ahead of me. Having heard about the red cup campaign, I pointed it out to my husband. We laughed, thinking we'd spotted the Vancouver version of the viral marketing campaign. But when we (coincidentally) followed the truck into the Park Royal shopping centre, the cup bounced on the bumper when the truck went over a speed bump. My husband thinks the driver honestly left a full coffee cup on the bumper while loading up the truck. I'm holding out hope for the red cup campaign, since the cup merely bounced and did not fall off. Let me know if you see this campaign in your town.

Vancouver GMAT prep courses

General

2005-12-01 23:29:21

Vancouver GMAT prep course provider Veritas Prep has taken me on as an instructor. I'm teaching the verbal section of the GMAT, the international admissions test for MBA programs. In January, I plan to teach the quantitative section, too.

Teaching has been a long-time passion for me. Earlier this year, I completed an instructor training program. I'm pleased to now be teaching for Veritas Prep.

Corporations that benefit from customers' goodwill

General

2005-11-25 03:52:54

As the start of the holiday shopping season approaches, we can expect some retailers to promote donations for food banks, needy families and other groups. In some cases, retailers act as donation points, provide resources to coordinate fundraising, or even make their own donations. However, some companies simply encourage shoppers to make full-price purchases of items in the store. As a result, the retailer profits from the goodwill of its customers. A new Wal-Mart TV ad even features a coach who takes his players to Wal-Mart to shop for the local toy drive. Although it's possible that Wal-Mart offers some sort of discount, this certainly isn't clear in the ad. It seems more likely that Wal-Mart and retailers like it want to be seen as promoting community spirit.

The Wal-Mart ad irked me and I planned to write about corporations that profit from customers' donations. I don't expect corporations to make donations -- that's not my grudge. My gripe is with companies that promote the donations of their employees or customers without providing any donations or in-kind services.

Today, I received an email today from Tracey Axelsson, owner of Bundles, a Vancouver-based children's store. I was heartened to discover that, until December 18th, Bundles will offer 40 percent off any item purchased for the Gordon Neighbourhood House's Toy Drive and the Basics For Babies campaign. Bundles will collect donations and deliver them to the charities.

"I've always wanted to do something at my store to participate in this kind of outreach, but I've always felt uncomfortable with making money off these loving acts of strangers," says Tracey. "I think this is a great way to not only eliminate my discomfort and provide a strong means to reinforce these generous acts. I'm also looking forward to showing my gratitude for the support we've received in the past few years since opening!"

Bravo to Bundles for taking a deep discount during the busy holiday season. Bundles is in English Bay -- a few steps east of Davie and Denman, at 1789 Davie Street.

Everything I Know about Business...

General

2005-11-03 14:51:33

Wiley Canada sent me copy of Everything I Know about Business...I Learned from a Canadian, a book by Leonard Brody and David Raffa. Having finally had the time to review it, I'm impressed. Canada is a country of intrepid entrepreneurs, but we rarely hail the success of those people. Whether too shy, too self-deprecated or simply underfunded, Canadians have had little to say about their business leaders.

Everything I Need to Know... tells the stories of more than a dozen Canadians who've succeeded in business. Brand names like Jim Pattison and Leonard Asper join successful, but less-known figures like Terry McBride (Nettwerk Music) and Joel Cohen (producer of The Simpsons). In an interesting but effective twist, Moshe Safdie, renowned architect, shows up to provide advice on organizational design.

The book can seem a bit dry, text-heavy and cramped at times. However, it highlights tales we Canadians rarely hear. Canadian entrepreneurs often say that, if you can make it in Canada's frigid business climate, you can make it anywhere. This book shows just how that happens.

Proceeds from the book go to Junior Achievement

Vision Vancouver needs to search engine optimize

General Marketing

2005-11-02 03:07:16

Vision Vancouver, a contender in the upcoming Vancouver city council elections, needs to optimize its website for search engines. Plunk "Vision Vancouver" into Google, and you won't have any luck. In comparison, Vancouver COPE and Vancouver NPA are tops in Google.

As for the Vision Vancouver website, you'll find it at VoteVision.ca. But I only know that because I visited the #4 Google result (VancouverVision.com), a film industry site that had a message directing me to the right URL for the political party.

Not every voter -- or customer -- turns to the web. But when people come looking for your company, you want them to succeed. Otherwise, you're turning away people who are obviously interested in what you have to say. If you can't satisfy their need for information, your competitors will. You're essentially giving away business.

Canadian Tire Guy's secret life

General Marketing

2005-10-27 17:09:59

The Canadian Tire Guy's secret life is revealed in this Macleans piece Gill Gunson sent me. Macleans speculates that the Canadian Tire Guy is a high school geography teacher whose history of domestic bliss is precarious at best: "It can't be easy, even for a fictional character, to have a mid-life crisis play out on national TV."

The Canadian Tire Guy's ad contract says he can't do interviews. I'd love to know how he and is wife can fork out all that dough for gadgets without ever telling one another. Perhaps we'll get a chance to see him Rototil his Canadian Tire credit card some time before the Canadian Tire Guy's wife (Ms. Canadian Tire Guy? There is no female equivalent to guy.) serves him divorce papers and a demand for maintenance payments made with Canadian Tire money.

See other comments I've made about the Canadian Tire Guy.

Legacy on Robson

General Marketing

2005-10-19 15:30:14

Via HundredNorth, a real legacy on Robson:

Robson Street's an exclusive address, all right.

By my counts, this is strike 2 for the Legacy on Robson billboard. When they originally put up the billboard -- complete with URL -- they didn't bother to make sure their website was up.

The grand opening for the condo is this weekend. If the developers are smart, they'll have a response to this picture, which is already no doubt circulating the blog world.

Consultant blogs -- consult your blog strategy

General

2005-10-12 12:47:03

Consultant blogs are still a minority in the wide world of blogs. Most consultants still aren't blogging for business. But that may not be a bad thing. Blogger Mike McLaughlin says consultant blogs should be optional: "Even though anyone can have a blog running in minutes, that doesn’t mean everyone should."

McLaughlin's right. Content is still king on the Internet. If you don't have anything to say, no one will want to read it. If you're so desperate for entries that you blog about your cat, your rock collection or your latest doctor's appointment, you're probably not meeting your goal of running a business blog. There's nothing wrong with running a personal blog, but you should consider whether the content is right for your audience.

You should also consider how much time you want to devote to your business consultant blog. Consider your blog strategy -- timing, content, audience, and themes. Blogging for the sake of making a daily post is going to come across as unispired. It's better to blog on an as-needed basis. Besides, you've got a business to run, right?

Update: Rhona-Mae Arca's business blog

Update (June 7, 2006):
I'm now a huge fan of business blogging. I recently launched the Become a Consultant blog at ConsultantJournal.com, due to the requests for consulting information I receive from my AndreaCoutu.com site visitors.

179 Area Code and telemarketing

General

2005-10-05 18:48:33

Ever Googled for an area code after seeing mysterious number on your call display? Darren Barefoot reports receiving telemarketing calls from a number that starts with 179. He's traced the call to a security system call centre. But, if you try to look up the 179 area code in Google, you won't find anything. That's because many North American telcos are allowing clients to choose their own area codes, including 179. For example, Vonage and Verizon let VOIP clients choose their own area codes. That means telemarketers could be calling from anywhere -- even overseas.

For businesses, this is the telecom equivalent to having a virtual office, PO box, or registered address at a lawyer's office. When you can choose your own area code, you can influence the people you're calling. Not impressed with a Winnipeg area code that signals "telemarketer"? Choose 416 for Toronto. Think clients won't be impressed by calls from Jersey? Choose 212 for New York City.

Of course, this also opens the door to abuse. Customers will need to be more vigilant with telemarketers. Just because a call looks like it came from New York City doesn't mean it is. You never know who's on the other end.

Why press releases end with 30 or xxx

Technology Adoption

2005-10-05 16:23:57

"Why do press releases end in -30-?" asked one of my fellow consultants this morning. Press releases (or news releases, depending on your preference) often finish with -30-, -END- or XXX. As a communications professional, my friend knew what -30- signalled, but was interested in finding out the reason for the shorthand.

The tale handed down to me -- as to other press release writers -- is that, in the olden days of public relations, PR people sometimes put XXX to show the end of a Telex transmission. Some smart aleck interpeted XXX as Roman numerals and converted it to 30. When fax machines became all the rage, more and more people were transmitting press releases and 30 became more popular than ever.

However, I wasn't sure how true this story was. A Google search revealed a few rumours about US Civil War telegraphers using 30, but I couldn't find a citation. So I asked the MetaFilter community why press releases end with 30 -- and asked for some references. About 35 minutes later, someone replied with a link to the Western Union 92 code of 1859. Telegraph operators ended transmissions with 30.

So the 30 predates the US Civil War (1861) and Telex (1935), not to mention faxes and email. I assume few telegraphers used Roman numerals: XXX in Morse is "-..- -..- -..- ", whereas 30 is a quick "...-- -----". But I'll keep checking. There's bound to be a telegraphy hound who can tell me.

Vancouver company marketing via temporary tattoos

General Marketing

2005-10-01 22:57:57

A Vancouver company has turned tattoos into marketing for its coffee. The company's owners sport temporary tattoos of their logo and web address. When people comment on the tattoos, the entrepreneurs have the chance to strike up conversations about the company's products.

Temporary tattoos are clever. But the company also issued a news release, seeking to gain publicity from its tattoo campaign. That's where the firm can gain some real marketing traction. Rather than just marketing itself to a few individuals, the coffee company can tap into the mass media.

However, I noticed they issued the news release today. Saturday is usually a bad day for news releases -- they wind up on an editor's desk and sit until Monday. And, on Monday, the editor has a thousand other faxes, reports, phone calls, email messages and other things to deal with. And, since the headline is extremely long -- "GoldenPalace.com Uses Human Billboards to Advertise; Now Vancouver Entrepreneurs Make History Using Tattoos to Promote the World's First Healthy Coffee at Cupofmoney.com" -- editors will need to make an effort to read it. Snappy headlines and good timing work wonders for news releases. Too much text and a weekend may leave this news release buried, no matter how clever the concept.

Site note: text-based page titles

General

2005-09-30 23:30:47

Just a quick note to say this blog now uses text-based URLs. My magnificent developer has added a feature that automatically turns blog titles into URLs. Before, the blog entries were numbered. Those old entries and their permalinks still work. However, the new text-based URLs will make it easier for web surfers to understand the page content.

My developer also just added LiveBookmark support for Firefox.

Now, back to the show...

Deceptive marketing law

General Marketing

2005-09-28 23:04:46

A little ad copy never hurt anybody, right? Well, maybe not, but Tasers may have. So the company can no longer call its product "non-lethal". Taser will change its product descriptions, as part of an effort to meet US deceptive marketing laws.

Here, in Canada, companies are subject to the Competition Act, specifically part seven, known as Deceptive Marketing Practices. Note that this law also applies to claims made on the Internet. That means your website -- including product specifications -- needs to be accurate. Otherwise, you could be setting yourself up for a lawsuit. So, before you click the publish button, make sure your messages are on the up-and-up.

By popular demand: comments

General

2005-09-24 21:29:06

Prompted by requests from several regular readers, I (er, um, my developer) have added comments to this blog. When I launched this blog almost two years ago, I was reluctant to include comment functionality. This was due to concerns about spam and inappropriate content. I still harbour these concerns. However, my developer -- who handcoded this site -- has built a comments application that allows me to approve content before it is published. This may not fit with every reader's vision of dialogue, but this remains a business blog. I'll refrain from explaining what content is "inappropriate" unless a need arises. I'm fairly confident that my readers aren't the problem -- spambots are more likely to be nuisances.

Bumvertising hits climb

General Marketing

2005-09-22 21:41:32

On Tuesday, when I posted about "bumvertising", Google had 18,600 hits for the word. As of now, Google returns 26,200 results. This just goes to show how publicity and viral marketing (mostly via blogs) can increase your exposure.

Update: 36,600 hits on September 23, 2005

PokerfaceBook bumvertising stunt

General Marketing

2005-09-20 23:27:44

When a friend emailed me about an gambling community's use of homeless people to advertise its site, I was skeptical. Pokerfacebook.com claims to hire homeless people to hold signs advertising its website. The site even calls this "bumvertising", a term it claims to have trademarked. Tonight, The Daily Show featured a segment on the website and its unorthodox tactic. But I remain skeptical. It seems more likely to me that "bumvertising" is actually a publicity ploy. The term, which some may find offensive, is sure to capture the attention of the media and the public. Already circulating as a forwarded email story, "bumvertising" now has 18,600 hits on Google. After tonight's Daily Show coverage, this number will only grow. In fact, as the Daily Show went to commercial, I noticed that Pokerfacebook.com's site slowed under the strain of traffic from the US West Coast. It's possible the firm hired some homeless people, but it was probably as a publicity stunt, not as a foray into a new advertising concept. As a publicity stunt, though, the concept should work wonders. 18,601 (counting mine) hits in Google won't hurt anyone.

See also my follow up post on this story.

Site note: server back up

General

2005-09-15 00:07:40

My server crashed last week. Despite several valiant attempts at reviving it, I (well, my tech) determined that a couple of components had fried. So I (the tech, to tell the truth) ported everything to an old machine. This should be okay for the short-term. Blogging will resume shortly.

Yahoo! News not to blame for captions

Social Capital

2005-09-05 21:05:11

Per the question I asked in my last post, caption writers apparently meant no bias in describing New Orleans looters. Yahoo! News made a statement, noting that it accepts captions directly from wire services. The reporters from AFP and AP say they saw how the persons pictured acquired their items.

The Associated Press said its policy was clear. "When we see people go into businesses and come out with goods, we call it looting," said Santiago Lyon, AP's director of photography. "When we just see them carrying things down the road, we call it carrying items."

Score one for the reporters.

Vancouver Marketing Consultant Andrea Coutu's Blog

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