Auch wenn ich persönlich kein Vodafone Kunde bin und es auch nicht werde, muss ich sagen, dass die Werbung mich zum schmunzeln bringt. Ich frage mich dennoch, wie viele Menschen die Botschaft, die Vodafone mit diesem Clip überbringen möchte wirklich verstanden haben. Ich denke das viele vor dem Fernseher sitzen und nicht realisieren, dass Vodafone eine Kampfansage gegen T-Mobile, O2 und Eplus startet. Auch interessant wäre es zu wissen, wie effektiv eine solche “Marke X ist die bessere Wahl” Werbung ist.

Meine Master Dissertation habe ich über die Effektivität von Events in der Deutschen Getränkeindustrie geschrieben. Unter anderem ging es auch um die Wirkung von Kommunikationsmaßnahmen auf die Konsumenten. Dabei waren zwei ganz wichtige Punkte:

Emotionen & Integration

Bei dem folgenden Werbeclip ist meiner Meinung nach beides bestens vereint.

Ich finde die T-Mobile Werbungen echt super, wirklich emotional und man kann einfach nicht umschalten.

Die Stimme von Paul Potts macht die Menschen vor dem Fernseher aufmerksam, so dass man sich die Werbung bewusst anguckt, was in Zeiten der absoluten Reizüberflutung, natürlich besonders optimal für die Marke ist.

So, zum Schluss noch meine Lieblingswerbung.

My studies in Leeds are nearly over, excepting the graduation ceremony in November. It was quite stressful during the period of the Master Dissertation, therefore I had no time to go on with this blog. However, I am actually applying for jobs and have some more time to continue writing.

Now I am back in Germany, which is the reason why I decided to write this blog rather in German than in English. In spite of this there will be some posts in English, if the topic is concerning the UK.

So here we go…

wow, have you ever tried?

Sign spinning – what you could see is not just a new hobby, it is also a new form of marketing or advertising. Sign spinning is a controversial form of outdoor advertising in which trained employees stand on public street corners and display surfboard-sized cardboard signs.

As advertising changes from just print into more creative and attention catching direction, this form of human advertising is beneficial, as it is aimed to attract a crowd of pedestrians with stunts by the sign spinner. This performance should result in word of mouth (wom) advertising and interest in the product or company.

Sign spinning emerged due to a boring advertising job, which means presenting a sign, that people on the road can see it… This was absolutely too boring for Joe Ambert, Max Durovic and Michael Kenny who worked for a sign company and started doing tricks during their working time. This seemed to be paid off. The sign spinners get more and more attention, which can also be seen on You Tube. Loads of people upload a private video of their sign spinning experience, when they walked or drove on the road.

Sign spinning is getting bigger and bigger and also training courses and competitions are offered. Furthermore, there is also a blog web page www.signspinnerworld.com which shows sign spinners mainly all over the USA. But also in other countries, this type of hobby emerges now. And it could also be seen in the world wide web, that the demand for sign spinners as advertising tool is enormous.

Here the story of Michael Kenny in a short video.

First, I wanted to write about the fact that Ryanair changed their webpage procedure, when booking a flight. In my last post of Ryanair, about the toilet fee (which reveals in a PR stunt) there is a statement that it is illegal to have presettings, which would lead to higher cost when the details are not changed manually.

So, apparently they react on this.

Whereas on the other hand, people who want to travel with Ryanair now can expect high fees regarding the check-in, luggage and payment since May this year.

Nevertheless, last week I found another newspaper article on Ryanair, which was very interesting.

‘Fat tax’ on fliers gaining momentum at Ryanair

Again, the low-cost airline, which is well known for their aggressive approach to make money or get attention due PR, wants to introduce the ‘fat tax’, like Ryanair called it. ‘Fat’ people would have to pay for a second seat, measured by their body mass index.

As the PR stunt of the toilet fee was revealed, Ryanair goes on with a campaign, where they gather suggestions from customers, about what charges the company can implement next.

As a result of this online survey the ‘fat tax’ comes to light. Approximately 40,000 people supported this idea. Discrepancies about the tax can be seen everywhere in the web. Some people would appreciate it, others see it as

“it would add unnecessary complexity to the boarding procedure and it might also run foul of discrimination laws.”

In the United States, the tax is already introduced by some airlines. They stated that the initiator to implement the ‘fat tax’ was that they got so many complaints about obese people, who can not fit in one seat.

Also Ryanair said that they would like to introduce the ‘fat tax’ in order to react on consumers needs and make them more comfortable, instead of making profit.

Ryanair want their customers to feel more comfortable? I can give a list of things they can do…

Beside this, I am not sure, whether this campaign is again a PR stunt, but in general I think it’s not, because it really seems to come from the consumers, as can be read in loads of comments to concerning articles. But the thing I can’t believe is, that Ryanair would do this for their customers, without thinking of their advantage. The only thing here is that they can shift the blame on others – their customers.

As you can see in the first video, the girl named Heidi Clarke, found a jacket, which was lost by a man she admires. She tries to find her Prince Charming through the web. As I first watched the video by accident, I thought: Is she really trying to find one single person on earth through a YouTube video?

No, of course not. This video is aimed to find thousands if not millions of people, preferably men, who want to have exactly this jacket, she is talking about.

Heidi is not Heidi, she is Lily. Furthermore, she is not Cinderella but an actress, and said: “I was employed by Witchery Man and yes I even managed to get my face on national TV.” Witchery is launching its first menswear line and this is the corresponding viral marketing.

Viral marketing describes any strategy that encourages individuals to pass on a marketing message to others, creating the potential for exponential growth in the message’s exposure and influence. Like viruses, such strategies take advantage of rapid multiplication to explode the message to thousands, to millions.

Her confession can be seen below.

In general, this campaign reached approximately 60,000 people within four days and nearly 200 comments were posted, for the most part by men.

There were quite different reactions to her video, as mentioned some men answered her and state that they were her man in the jacket and some made fun of her.

As well the blogger world talked about the video. Some found that Heidi talks in too much detail about the “really nice” jacket with its “beautiful silk lining“.

Nevertheless, it is the question how successful this campaign was. Of course, the company reached a huge amount of people, but still and even more important is the sustainable image of the company, as many complained about this campaign. A comment to an article of the story was posted in the Australian news.

“I have already emailed them to inform them I will boycott and will take great pleasure in telling friends to do the same. The educated public is sick of these stunts and cheap antics.“

It is estimated that the “man in the jacket” campaign get a free media coverage of about $8 million, which was as fact itself beneficial and desirable for all companies. However as Gruen Transfer stated “But is any publicity good publicity? Was the gamble worth the negative press?”

As stated in the Sydney Morning Herald, such campaigns can potentially scratch a brand image, but web pages like YouTube will still be a mean for marketing activities as experts state. The only thing, which would harm the potential impact, is that marketer will be more careful in this area. Furthermore, “Posing as an ad isn’t the crime but crossing the line between all out lying and being clever is“, says David Whittle of digital agency Mark.

Just one more video in the end. I will show you a response to the marketers of this viral campaign.

said an economist at Moody’s Economy.com named Sophia Koropeckyj.

I was looking for some information in the internet, about the actual situation in the job market, especially in marketing jobs. Because I am now starting to think about applying. But I am curious whether I will get a job or not or how long it will take to find a job. I often hear about people who are fired or have to work less, because of the recession.

Because of he contradictory messages, I find it difficult to create my own opinion about the actual situation. On the one hand I’ve read some articles and heard from industry professionals that a recession can be an opportunity. I have been at the Marketing Live conference this year in Leeds, they and as well in our university, we talked about the fact, that marketing isn’t an expense, it is an investment and that it shouldn’t be neglected, especially during recessions.

The American Business Press states:

“the findings of the six Recession studies to date present formidable evidence that cutting advertising appropriations in times of economic downturns can result in both immediate and long-term negative effects on sales and profit levels.”

And this is the chance for a company to interfere. When competitors cut their budgets, smaller companies can enter the market and get on the gravy train.

Some German articles (example) state as well, that especially now it is the time to ask for a promotion or pay rise, because of the fact, that most people are scared to ask their bosses. But how can this work, when on the other hand, there are so many people who can not work any longer, because of shrinking number of positions in companies?

The CEO, John Challenge, of outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas stated, that there are some industry sectors, which still provide job opportunities that include the fields of:

* Education

* Energy

* Health care

* International business

* Environmental sector

* Security

But what about marketing?

Ashton Kutcher, posted a picture on his Twitter page (twitter.com/aplusk), where Demi Moore’s bottom in a white knickers can be seen. They were at the wedding of Bruce Willis in the Caribbean and Demi straighten Aston’s suit while wearing a bikini.

His comment on this picture: ‘Shhh, don’t tell wifey.’

As I’ve seen this; I thought it it can’t be real. Somebody is just joking and this picture doesn’t show Demi Moore. And I couldn’t believe that celebrities spend their time twittering. But I was curious and did some research.

I found so many celebrities, which have a twitter account. Some examples are:

Jimmy Fallon
Former Vice President Al Gore
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
Britney Spears
Jon Favreau
Coldplay
John Mayer
Billy Bush
Shaquille O’Neal
Mischa Barton
Jamie Oliver
Lance Armstrong
Lily Allen
Katy Perry
John Cleese
Lindsay Lohan

and many more…

And another person who is apparently also twittering is… you can’t imagine… the queen.
A Westminster Abbey spokeswoman said:

“We’ve got a new web manager in her 20s who is very up to date and it was her idea to start ‘twittering’.

“The impetus behind the idea was we thought it would be a really good way to reach out to a new audience.

“It’s just another tool in terms of getting people interested in the Commonwealth Observance.”

As it serves a purpose for the queen I think as well for the celebrities above, twitter is a good tool to get in contact with their fans and as well to promote themselves. They can choose when and if they want to be in contact with fans and as well it is a possibility to be in contact within a certain distance and without being in a situation of getting overrunned by screaming teenagers or nerving paparazzi.
But I found as well some information about hacked or faked accounts, which are these of Miley Cirus, Barack Obama, Ewan McGregors. This shows that the people behind such accounts are not necessarily these which were assumed to be. And it can have a negative impact on the people’s reputation; due to the fact that faked messages were send in the name of celebrities.

You want to know how the story of Ashton and Demi ends?

Demi posted back, ‘He is such a sneak and while I was steaming his suit too!’

It was the real-life and viral marketing campaign for Microsoft in 2004 known as “I love bees”. It was an alternate reality game and it was introduced to promote the video game “Halo 2″.

Alternate reality games (ARGs) weave together real-world artifacts with clues and puzzles hidden virtually any place, such as websites, libraries, museums, stores, signs, recorded telephone messages, movies, television programs, or printed materials. ARGs are not computer or video games, but electronic devices are frequently used to access clues. Players can meet and talk with characters in the narrative and use resources like postal mail, e-mail, the web, or the public library to find hints, clues, and various pieces of the puzzle.

At the beginning, specific video game players received a package, with jars of honey and a webpage address, www.ilovebees.com. 

These people were considered as ‘influentials’ because they are well linked within the Web 2.0 and therefore could distribute the message very quickly. This webpage, normally committed to beekeeping and selling honey, appeared as hacked. Hidden information about the characters of the game “Halo 2″  in form of a puzzle or audio logs was provided to tell the fictive story, which the players had to reveal. The information must be detected in order to solve the game. This was the online part of the game, which tuned then as well in the offline world.

The players figured out information about global positioning system coordinates and time codes, but they had first no clue about what’s behind this.

Players found out, that the coordinates refer to a telephone booth, which will ring at a certain time and the must be answered in order to obtain more information. All over the world, players had the opportunity to talk with the characters of the game directly. As well several emails were send, calls and real life meetings, between players and characters were arranged.

Through this campaign, the consumers of the game got a real life experience. And the question is raised, whether alternate reality games can be an effective tool for marketing activities. First of all, here some information about the success of the “I love bees” campaign:

- The target group, Microsoft wants to attract was the younger male, but they reached as well some middle-aged men and women.

- 250,000 visitors of the webpage in August 2004 when it was launched.

- 500,000 regular visitors.

- Approximately three million people visit the webpage over a time period of three months.

- 9000 people around the world actively participated in the game.

- 2.5 million people where involved in this campaign and are committed to the game.

- “I love bees” won several awards for its innovation.

- The campaign got huge coverage in gaming publications, as well as in the mainstream press.

- And word-of-mouth advertising from players through instant messengers.

The game analyst Billy Pidgeon, stated that: “This kind of viral guerrilla marketing worked… Everyone started instant messaging about it and checking out the site.”

Such alternate reality games are often used to advertise products or brands, without promoting them directly. Furthermore, it is a great tool in marketing, because of it has potential to be recognised and distributed by word-of-mouth, as can be seen in the example of “I love bees”. The involvement of the main target group and their interest in the game, which in turn can lead to a relationship of consumer and company, is a strong advantage.

Nevertheless, there is another side. Such campaigns, as well as the example of my last post about flashmobs, are often criticised, because of the “sponsored consumers”. A consumer who agrees to “buzz” on behalf of a product is called a “sponsored consumer.” Because of this “buzz” marketing, consumer protection authorities question the appropriateness of such campaigns. The consumer is in some way manipulated by the company, which rises the question, whether a company want to incur a vulnerable position, where attacs from consumer groups or consumers in general are possible.

In this post I want to write something about building communities and why the Web 2.0 can be a vital part of this. And another point is, how this could be beneficial in marketing.

Of course, everybody knows networks, like Facebook, MySpace, bebo, Linkedin, Twitter, blogs and many more. I am in Facebook, since a few months. A few weeks ago, I entered the group “LEEDS FLASHMOB!!!!” They describe a flashmob as: “It’s a sudden gathering of people into a crowd that does something unusual for a few minutes in unison and then disperses.”

You might think now, what are you talking about!? And what has this to do with Web 2.0 excepting the fact of mentioning Facebook. Read on…

Another definition is: Flash mob – a work of situationist art whereby individuals communicate over the Internet in order to come together as a group without warning, perform some random, pre-defined action intended to disrupt and confuse the people nearby, and then disperse. (Ford, 2003)

There the word internet comes in. The internet and especially the Web 2.0 is an optimal way of distributing messages. Its speed of communication and the availability is the advantage. Furthermore, it is great tool to reach people all over the world and to create a community.

Back to my example, I have been in the city centre, where the happening should take place yesterday (14^th of March 2009). But there was nothing. As I had a look on the Facebook group afterwards, most people where disappointed, because they are complaining about the bad organisation of the flashmob. I went there, because I was curious, how or whether a flashmob works. I have always been fascinated by such events, where a community of people, who don’t know each other, come together and be part of something. This gives me goose bumps. Nevertheless, the example of this community event fails its purpose. I don’t know, why this happens, but I think it can’t be the failure of the distribution of the message. Everything seemed to be clear and they have reached 2,428 people, which is enough to perform a nice flashmob. I think the humans behind the flashmob group failed in the implementation.

So, this was just a negative example, what I experienced regarding a flashmob. Nevertheless, there a a lot of positive examples, which could be find in the web.

As well very few companies already organised flashmobs in order to create an attention catching campaign to get their message across and furthermore to promote their product, service or brand.

Here an example of T-Mobile, it was produced for a commercial, but still creates an atmosphere of community among visitors and flashmob performers:

There have as well some flashmobs been in McDonald’s, where each person ordered a cheeseburger at the same time.

Such events often create huge media coverage and can create a we-feeling between a company and its customers. Therefore a flashmob can be considered as tool of promoting a product or brand.