Kodak Does Something New...Kind Of

Recently everyone at work has been all atwitter about Twitter. This has forced me to start using it as well. Whether that's a bad thing or a good thing only time will tell. But in the meantime it's at least interesting to follow some of the top dogs of the marketing industry who are using it. One is Gary Hayzlett of Kodak. And today, I saw that he posted this little link:

http://www.feistemail.com/

It's a new Kodak initiative that meshes photography (something they do) with communication (something they aim to do). Clearly, some designer or idea guy over there saw SomeECards.com and decided it would be a great idea if Kodak did something similar since they have (what I would imagine is) a buttload of old photography and nothing to do with it. I think it's timely and I'm glad to see Kodak doing something different. If they can open it up to user pictures the possibilities could be hilarious (not to mention more personal, something 4x6 pictures are all about).

My question is: Is this a good idea for their brand? I don't know the answer. What I do know is that Kodak is not associated with quality like it used to be. Maybe a brand extension powered by Kodak technology is in order...very similar to how they are positioning FesitEmail actually.

Above and Beyond Customer Service

We always hear of stores that allow their customers to go above and beyond when it comes to customer service (Nordstrom's springs to mind). Clearly there is inherent value in treating your customer like a friend and helping them achieve their goals, even if they're not sure what those goals are.

I stumbled upon this website that is full of back and forth interactions between one man and customers that frequent the stores he works at. Whether they are true or not, this one stuck out as an example of dealing with a bad customer through empathy and thoughtfulness that not only changed his day, but his life:

http://notalwaysright.com/a-heady-proposition/1226

Candy + Soft Serve = Amazing!

As my friend Josh was paying for his morning caffeine fix, I noticed some bright blue, yellow and red tinfoil wrappers that came out of his pocket. "Cadbury Creme Eggs," I thought to myself (fully forgetting that we are now in full Easter swing in the US). We got to talking some more and, knowing his interests, I suggested that it might be interesting to make some Cadbury Creme Egg ice cream. I believe his exact words were, "I find it hard to get excited about something I'm not excited about eating." Boo, I said. For pretty much my whole life I have always looked forward to my one Cadbury Creme Egg a year. The gritty feel of the sugar dough in globular yellow and white that oozes from the cracked shell, what a treat! While I can never bring myself to eat more than one without feeling like total crap, I do cherish that single, chocolate covered magic that the wizards at Cadbury dreamed up in their Wonka lab so many years ago.

Turns out, I'm not the only one who thinks it'd be good with ice cream. Thanks to our friends over at Buzzfeed, I stumbled across this post on McFlurrys of the world. And oh, what a wild and varied world it is. From Bluberry/Oreo in Japan to the Chips Ahoy version found in Mexico, the McFlurry has a universal appeal boosted further by McDonald's ability to tap into native desires and whip them into a delicious treat.











So what's the branding/marketing twist on this story: Know your customer. Could McD's push M&Ms and Butterfinger everywhere? They sure could. But it wouldn't be nearly as successful as tapping into the Brits' desire for Cadbury confections. Or the Japanese yearning for green tea. That's what makes this today's cool thing.

As an added bonus, I bring you the genius (IMHO) ads Cadbury ran to promote Creme Eggs in the days of your. A rabbit laying eggs and clucking like a chicken. Beautiful.

Responsiveness is key

By now I assume we've all been made aware of the Facebook Terms of Service debacle. The long and short of it is Facebook released a TOS update that stated all content posted to their site belonged to them. This in and of itself was problematic. Facebook then went further to say that even if you DELETED your account, they retained rights overall information you posted to their site. Yowsa! At the very least you'd think they would honor copyright law or something!

But, all of this was to no end because Facebook, facing an digital pitchfork and torch uprising of the villagers, has reverted back to the previous Terms of Service. So, what's the cool thing about this? In my opinion it's the responsiveness of Facebook to their users wishes. A while back they instituted their version of targeted advertising. People cried out, it came down. The same thing happened here. They tried something new, people said no, Facebook reneged and life went back to being beautiful. All in all, the company seems to look for ways to push the envelope but is very aware of the perils of doing so. Hey, they gotta figure out some way to make a profit, right?

In other news, it looks as though PepsiCo has lost the brand battle on Tropicana and is now pulling the new package design from store shelves.

You gotta wonder why this failed, especially when their new brand design for the Pepsi line seems to be doing well. Maybe it comes down to focusing too much on the Next Generation instead of the people who are buying the bulk of orange juice: moms. They moved from a wholesome, drinking the juice right out of the orange look to a streamlined, modern take. My gut feeling is that this shift just didn't jibe with their core consumer (based on the article, it seems my thought is not far off). However, it does bring us full circle to listening. Instead of forging ahead and shoving the new Tropicana down everyone's throats, they are reverting back to the old via mea culpa. Will it be the right move in the long run? I don't know. But I bet right now, it will be the right move for the bottom line.

The Guvment Gets It: PB Free

Couldn't resist a double post today. Stumbled across this post on an FDA app that allows you to track recalled products involved in the peanut butter scare. Is it pretty? No. Does it provide a service? Yes. Could it be better used as a mobile app? Probably but not everyone has those abilities. All in all I'd say the FDA gets a kudos on this for a quick turnaround and a stellar idea. What could your company be doing to get in touch with consumers and help them? Hey Macy's, why not an app that shows me 5 new articles of clothing a day based on brand and fit preferences? Wal Mart, help me save money with a tip of the day that doesn't require me buying anything! Give people information and they'll love you.

Forget Me Not

Scientists announce that it may be possible to "forget" bad things that happen to us. Turns out a beta-blocker, used to treat heart conditions, may also have an unforeseen effect of diminishing the negative emotional reactions felt when confronted with a bad past memory.

Check out the article here.

Implications? Of course there are. The first is what does this mean for us emotionally? Does everyone have things they'd rather forget? Sure. But don't those experiences and memories make us who we are and teach us things about life? Clearly more research will be done in using these drugs for secondary purposes, but maybe the first question to ask is should we be doing this at all...

In marketing news, the big thing today is Facebook and their Terms of Service. Ay, ay, ay! What are you doing Facebook?! Check out this brief synopsis from the Consumerist.

Here it is folks: The reason everyone is shitting their pants over the future. It used to be all one had to do was protect their SSN#. Now, as our lives increasingly move online, people can find out anything about us they want. The counterintuitive aspect of Facebook's new TOS is that it is designed to be a place to share about yourself with friends. Who the hell wants to do that when anything you put up there (original content created by you I might add, which brings up a whole other interesting legal twist) no longer belongs to you? It seems simpler to me to have the TOS read: When your account shuts down of your own volition, we erase any record of you having been a member of Facebook. What will that information help them do anyways? It can't help them advertise to you because you're not there. In fact it would screw up their stats. Would Facebook really have any interest in posting my response to a comment and pork and blogs? Probably not, but they shouldn't have the ability to do it.

The basic issue is this: Facebook is now treating its customers like content creators rather than partners. Turns out, we will do what we want when we want to (remember MySpace?). I come to Facebook to connect with friends, not serve as a breeding ground for banner ads. Keep sending me the bald guy ads, but leave my status alone for perpetuity.

The Future of RadioShack

The other day I heard RadioShack was hosting an agency review...only to find out that I was a day late and a dollar short as they'd already chosen the agencies to participate. Honestly, I think the size of my shop would have kept us out anyways (people being how they are good ideas can only come from international agencies) but I was pissed at myself for not even having the chance to be told no.

Today, as our planning director and I were grabbing lunch it occurred to me that I really shouldn't give a crap whether we got in or not if my real goal is to share the idea that RadioShack could be something more than it currently is. Money or no money in my pocket, what really excited me about the chance to work for them is the fact that they are in need of some directional realignment. I personally remember RadioShack as an 80s wunderhaven of tinkering and RC cars. Somewhere along the way, that was lost as Terri and Howie began slinging TVs at me. It might have been successful for a bit (same-store-sales wise) but it NEVER MADE SENSE. RadioShack should be known again for what it is: a tinkerers paradise. The store is about the opportunity to take things to the next level. Set up that 40 speaker surround sound system with 8 miles of cable. Mount your TV to the ceiling for in-bed viewing pleasure. Teach your kids to fix stuff AND become a little smarter by buying them a home electronics kit and let them make a robot.

When you mix this tinker/hacker mentality with the value-driven trend we are in as a society, RS has a huge opportunity to be the fix-it place. Don't toss that remote/TV/monitor/keyboard/etc. Make it work again...and make it better!

And with the US lagging far behind in engineering, why not take the opportunity to rebrand RS as the place to get excited about science. RS has the opportunity to not only be the purveyor of product but the source of instruction. Which in turn will lead to more purveying and more instructing and so on and so forth. Websites for TV tinkerers. Links to Lifehacker and Hack-a-day. Promo videos of cicuit bending bands that show how to use basic EE skills to your advantage musically and get people thinking about what else can be done with a soldering iron and a potentiometer.

Honestly, I think RS has made a step in this direction with their latest campaign "Do stuff." But, they have a chance to differentiate themselves further and they should take it. DON'T try to be a smaller Best Buy. DO be the store next to the Best Buy that's going to have a cadre of geeky employees to show you how to really make stuff cool. DON'T focus on selling commodities. DO focus on selling the potential to make commodities unique to the consumer. DON'T let yourself be known as the place that sells audio wire. DO be known as the place that sells gold-tipped, Swiss engineered hi-fi audio wire that only 1% of people know about. DON'T be everything to everyone. DO be the best resource to a group of willing evangelists.

RadioShack. Wire your world.

(Or some other great tagline ;)