Everyone likes free stuff. Everyone enjoys an unexpected act of kindness. Put the two together, and you’ve got a killer branding-building exercise. Before I talk about Pretzel Crisps – which I’ve enjoyed for some time as an alternative to the typical chips marinated in saturated or trans fats – some background … My second oldest …more
I discussed the concept of native PR last month. Unlike native advertising, there’s no charge for media placement in native PR. If there were ever a forum for communicators to experiment with storytelling, this is the place (no cost = low risk). I think it’s fair to say that the BuzzFeed Community has emerged as …more
Native advertising is all the rage in the publishing world. I read a statistic last week that most publications are at least experimenting with the concept. For those of you not familiar with native advertising, it refers to a publication serving up paid stories and editorial content the same way. You’ll hear this technique also …more
Many brands jumped into the real-time marketing fray with the Royals’ latest addition to the family on Monday. This effort wasn’t as effective as what took place during the Super Bowl blackout for a reason I’ll get into in a minute. Still, I don’t think the Mashable headline, “Brands, Try, Fail to Capitalize on Royal …more
After Hillary Clinton won the New Hampshire primary back in 2008, she stood at the podium and uttered the words, “I found my own voice.” “Voice” is tricky. It’s always there. Yet, it can be tougher to find than Waldo in bad lighting. And when you do find it, success is not guaranteed. (Just ask …more
I admire Martin Luther King. Last year I wrote about my favorite storytelling in the “I Have a Dream” speech. This post is less about Dr. King and more about the shepherds for the estates of the famous. I recognize there’s a revenue-generation component to these operations. Whether it involves Elvis, Humphrey Bogart, or Martin …more
I penned this tweet last week: Some background – To show people it’s a new day at J. C. Penney, the company posted a video called “It’s No Secret” on YouTube in early May. The 30-second spot acknowledged past mistakes and plans to change its ways. I took the position that if a company deploys …more
Seeking Alpha delivers one of the best bargains in the communications business. Complete the registration form, and hear Seeking Alpha’s equivalent of “open sesame” – free access to thousands of transcripts discussing the financial performance of public companies. In spite of scripting that would impress the World Wrestling Federation, weird “storytelling” can still surface in …more
Americans love a good apology. Show even a modicum of sincerity, and all is forgiven. J. C. Penney and its apology ad is certainly banking on this dynamic. Unfortunately, the strategy is flawed, and the execution is worse. We’ve simplified the chain of events in the aerial view below: Did I miss something? I thought …more
