From Federal Communications Commission (FCC) net neutrality rulings to the New Year’s reigning media outlets, here’s a look at what made headlines this week in the integrated marketing communications industry.
FCC Rules to Regulate the Internet
This fiercely debated topic came to a head earlier this week when the FCC passed a controversial net neutrality order to ensure the Internet stays free and open. The limited net neutrality rules – the FCC’s first-ever attempt to regulate the Internet – focus on: 1) ensuring transparency of Internet services; 2) no blocking of lawful content, applications and services; and 3) prohibition of Internet services from discriminating against any lawful content or giving preferential treatment to certain content.
While it all may sound good and well, the rules have yet to garner much support, and rumors are swirling that Verizon is contemplating a challenge. However, it appears this was, overall, a smart step forward by the Commission. We’re following this topic closely, so stay tuned for more in-depth coverage. In the meantime, let us know what you think. Should the government regulate Internet access?
For those in need of a quick refresher, net neutrality is the buzzword used to describe the principle of maintaining unfiltered access to the Internet. Learn more about net neutrality by watching this helpful video from Engadget.
2011 Top Media Outlets
Burrelles Luce released this week its list of the top media outlets for 2011, which includes leading traditional and social media outlets in the U.S. based on circulation, visits, authority or market share. No big surprises in the area of daily newspapers: The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and New York Times once again hold the top-three spots. However, where it gets more interesting is blogs. The Huffington Post retained its No. 1 position, while Mashable moved in on TechCrunch’s No. 2 turf. The top-20 list welcomed newcomers Mediaite, Lifehacker and GigaOM, while bidding adieu to The Daily Dish, NewsBusters.org and Business Insider.
A trip down memory lane – or at least back to 2007, when Burrelles Luce first began ranking blogs – reveals that 60 percent of the blogs that appeared on the list four years ago are no longer in the top 25. Remember Perezhilton.com and Gawker? Looks like the days of celebrity gossip blogs ruling the Net are no more.
Prius Bundles Up for Its 10th Birthday
We recently gave props to Toyota for its Swagger Wagon campaign, but it appears the carmaker is due kudos for its Prius Projects effort, as well. To celebrate the earth-friendly car’s 10th anniversary (wow, 10 years already!?), Toyota, with help from agency partner Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles, has developed a film series that is slowly revealing the future of Prius. In the latest spot, entitled Prius Cozy, a group of hipsters gathers in a perfectly pastoral setting to outfit a Prius in a homemade sweater. The end result is a car that looks cozy enough to snuggle up to (or in, as it would be). But, the greater result may be the warm and fuzzy feeling tree huggers and space-starved city dwellers alike get when thinking about the brand.
Marcom This Week: From A to Zinc is compiled by the Vitamin IMC editorial team. They can be reached at vitaminimc@gmail.com. Miss your vitamins last week? Visit last week's “Marcom This Week."
Showing posts with label Toyota. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Toyota. Show all posts
Friday, December 24, 2010
Monday, December 20, 2010
Top 10 IMC campaigns of 2010 (Part 1)
By Carrie Griffith
From ground-breaking viral to deep consumer insights to epic failures, here is our look at the integrated marketing campaigns that made the top of our list in 2010. Check back tomorrow for the the second part of the list!
Most Buzz Worthy – Old Spice: Man You Could Smell Like
To gain relevance and credibility with younger men, Wieden and Kennedy created the “Man You Could Smell Like” campaign for Old Spice. Old Spice tapped into a deep human insight—guys want to be manly—by using a humorous, hyper-masculine character to challenge a man’s most basic insecurities and help him “navigate the seas of manhood.” The Old Spice campaign infiltrated conversations both online and offline, with an 800% increase in Facebook interaction, 140 million YouTube views, and 120K Twitter followers. Did I forget to mention that sales of Old Spice actually increased in 2010?
Brand-Breaking Viral Campaign – Smirnoff: Bros Icing Bros
“Bros Icing Bros” started as a website and launched into a viral drinking game that swept college campuses across the nation. The rules of the game encourage underage binge drinking, which seriously threatened Smirnoff’s brand image. Controversy continues to surround the campaign’s origin—was it a consumer-generated phenomenon? Or was it a calculated risk taken by Smirnoff to boost sales? In response to allegations of questionable guerilla marketing tactics, Smirnoff took down the website (which now states: “We had a good run Bros…”), but the game lives on.
Cause Marketing Campaign – Pepsi Refresh Project
In lieu of a multi-million dollar Super Bowl campaign, Pepsi invested millions to engage consumers in an authentic and meaningful way. With the help of TBWA\CHIAT\DAY, Pepsi launched the Pepsi Refresh Project, which provided a consumer-driven forum for everyday people to post their “Do Good” ideas. To date, Pepsi has granted more than $1.3 million to individuals and organizations that posted ideas on the website. To learn more, check out Vitamin IMC’s conversation about the Pepsi Refresh Project with Medill IMC alum David Dreyer of TBWA\CHIAT\DAY.
Consumer-Centric Campaign – Domino's: Pizza Turnaround
Domino’s Pizza tastes like cardboard and ketchup… and the company execs will be the first to tell you! In its Pizza Turnaround campaign, Domino’s took the side of the brand haters and publicly admitted that its 49-year-old pizza recipe was gross. With the help of Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Domino’s positioned its brand as a partner by listening to and involving consumers every step of the pizza reformulation process. Most marked the campaign strategy as brand suicide, but in a recessionary year Domino’s achieved double-digit same-store sales growth of 11.7% in the third quarter.
Stereotype Buster – Toyota: Swagger Wagon
When you hear the word “minivan” what thoughts immediately come to mind? For most, negative associations arise that usually involve avoidance of owning/driving/riding in one. Among the 20-30 something audience, the minivan is the antithesis of cool. Toyota took a unique approach to combat the stigma that surrounds owning a minivan by turning the stereotype on its head. The Swagger Wagon campaign makes minivans cool by featuring a quirky couple rapping about their family, day-to-day life, and minivan. While the commercial does not position the minivan as a choice car, it encourages families to laugh and be proud to drive a minivan.
What integrated marketing campaigns made your top 10 in 2010? Please share in the comments! And be sure to look for Part 2 of our list tomorrow.
Carrie Griffith is a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University’s Medill School and is Vitamin IMC's director of online initiatives. She can be reached at carriehinkle2011@u.northwestern.edu.
From ground-breaking viral to deep consumer insights to epic failures, here is our look at the integrated marketing campaigns that made the top of our list in 2010. Check back tomorrow for the the second part of the list!
Most Buzz Worthy – Old Spice: Man You Could Smell Like
To gain relevance and credibility with younger men, Wieden and Kennedy created the “Man You Could Smell Like” campaign for Old Spice. Old Spice tapped into a deep human insight—guys want to be manly—by using a humorous, hyper-masculine character to challenge a man’s most basic insecurities and help him “navigate the seas of manhood.” The Old Spice campaign infiltrated conversations both online and offline, with an 800% increase in Facebook interaction, 140 million YouTube views, and 120K Twitter followers. Did I forget to mention that sales of Old Spice actually increased in 2010?
Brand-Breaking Viral Campaign – Smirnoff: Bros Icing Bros
“Bros Icing Bros” started as a website and launched into a viral drinking game that swept college campuses across the nation. The rules of the game encourage underage binge drinking, which seriously threatened Smirnoff’s brand image. Controversy continues to surround the campaign’s origin—was it a consumer-generated phenomenon? Or was it a calculated risk taken by Smirnoff to boost sales? In response to allegations of questionable guerilla marketing tactics, Smirnoff took down the website (which now states: “We had a good run Bros…”), but the game lives on.
Cause Marketing Campaign – Pepsi Refresh Project
In lieu of a multi-million dollar Super Bowl campaign, Pepsi invested millions to engage consumers in an authentic and meaningful way. With the help of TBWA\CHIAT\DAY, Pepsi launched the Pepsi Refresh Project, which provided a consumer-driven forum for everyday people to post their “Do Good” ideas. To date, Pepsi has granted more than $1.3 million to individuals and organizations that posted ideas on the website. To learn more, check out Vitamin IMC’s conversation about the Pepsi Refresh Project with Medill IMC alum David Dreyer of TBWA\CHIAT\DAY.
Consumer-Centric Campaign – Domino's: Pizza Turnaround
Domino’s Pizza tastes like cardboard and ketchup… and the company execs will be the first to tell you! In its Pizza Turnaround campaign, Domino’s took the side of the brand haters and publicly admitted that its 49-year-old pizza recipe was gross. With the help of Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Domino’s positioned its brand as a partner by listening to and involving consumers every step of the pizza reformulation process. Most marked the campaign strategy as brand suicide, but in a recessionary year Domino’s achieved double-digit same-store sales growth of 11.7% in the third quarter.
Stereotype Buster – Toyota: Swagger Wagon
When you hear the word “minivan” what thoughts immediately come to mind? For most, negative associations arise that usually involve avoidance of owning/driving/riding in one. Among the 20-30 something audience, the minivan is the antithesis of cool. Toyota took a unique approach to combat the stigma that surrounds owning a minivan by turning the stereotype on its head. The Swagger Wagon campaign makes minivans cool by featuring a quirky couple rapping about their family, day-to-day life, and minivan. While the commercial does not position the minivan as a choice car, it encourages families to laugh and be proud to drive a minivan.
What integrated marketing campaigns made your top 10 in 2010? Please share in the comments! And be sure to look for Part 2 of our list tomorrow.
Carrie Griffith is a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University’s Medill School and is Vitamin IMC's director of online initiatives. She can be reached at carriehinkle2011@u.northwestern.edu.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Toyota: too late or restoring the faith?
By Brandi Heinz
No marketing communications professional looks forward to the day they must navigate a company crisis. Toyota’s recent floor mat and sticky pedal safety recalls are the most recent examples of balancing damage control with open communications. The safety recalls and Toyota’s subsequent responses open the potential for major damage to their strong brand built on safe, reliable, high-quality vehicles.
Meeting the challenge head-on, Toyota launched a comprehensive PR strategy to address the situation openly and honestly. Their website, www.toyota.com/recall, includes updates on what’s being done to address the problems and has videos with more information for consumers—such as what to do if they experience trouble braking.
But will this campaign be enough to calm consumers after months of bad news? It took nearly 10 days for Toyota to launch this response strategy, and consumer perception has dropped to a new low. If they hope to uphold their brand values, Toyota must avoid additional crises and continue to create open and honest dialogue to fuel positive brand momentum.
***
Brandi Heinz is a student advisor and blogger at Vitamin IMC and a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University's Medill School. She has owned two Toyota Camrys. She can be reached at brandi.heniz@gmail.com.
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