Move Over Burger McDonald's Is Thirsty

Over the years fast food giant, McDonald's has been making a shift to more beverage choices. In July McDonald's will roll out smoothies to compete with Planet Smoothie, Smoothie King and Jamba Juice.

But will customers think of McDonald's as a beverage destination? It might depend on the price of theirs versus the competitors.

Even so, I'm not sure I will. Over the last couple years McDonald's has added premium coffee options to their menu and I still find myself going to Starbucks, Caribou or Crimson Cup for my java. I just don't even think about McDonald's as a coffee stop. I guess I just relate the brand to burgers and fries and not coffees and smoothies.

For more info on this story read the Advertising Age article here.

Very Cool Site

Today I found a cool website worth sharing.

Vintage Ad Browser

There you can find vintage advertisements for various topics dating back to the mid-1800's.

An early alcohol advertisement from the 1840's.

A movie ad from the 1930's.

Thanks All My Favs for this new website. I've definitely added it to my favs!

Kudos To Verizon on Texting Campaign

This campaign may have been going on for awhile but I saw my first commercial last night. Great messaging and a strong campaign. Kudos to Verizon for being a leader and addressing the issue that is linked to their business.

Check Out My Shoestring Creative Web Page

Click on post title to see entire page

columbus imPRessions Partners With Shoestring Creative Group To Better Serve the Non-Profit Community

columbus imPRessions is joining efforts with Shoestring Creative Group and is proud to be offering comprehensive marketing and public relations expertise to central Ohio and Midwest nonprofit organizations.

Having similar visions for the non-profit industry, Michele Savoldi could not be happier with the partnership. "Merging our skills and expertise, this partnership will be able to provide services in a knowledgeable, timely and efficient manner to successfully fulfill everyone of our client’s needs."

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Non-profit organizations can contact Michele Savoldi, Senior Project Director for Shoestring Creative Group at 888.835.6236 or email micheles@shoestringgroup.com.

Currently under construction Michele will soon have a Shoestring Creative web page at www.shoestringgroup.com/michelesavoldi

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Shoestring Creative Group is an award-winning, full-service marketing communications agency that exclusively serves nonprofits. As national leaders in nonprofit communications, our group is committed to providing creative, affordable solutions specifically created to meet the needs and challenges of nonprofits. We are one of only a few firms in the country that specializes in serving this unique niche.

columbus imPRessions will continue to serve small businesses providing quality marketing, public relations and social media services.

Is It Too Soon?

Last night I was relaxing and watching some mindless TV. During many of the commercial breaks I saw Christmas commercials. You know snow, the twinkling lights and the subtle holiday music. I couldn't believe my eyes. October isn't even over yet. Heck, It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown isn't even supposed to air until tonight (ABC 8p).

I love the holiday season, but I'm not quite ready. Charlie Brown's little sis, Sally couldn't have said it better, "Tricks or Treats only comes once a year. You owe me restitution." There should be some law that says the holiday season cannot be advertised until Halloween is over. Right now I want to be spooked not merry and bright.

What do you think? Too soon to start holiday commercials? Have you seen any yet? Feel free to comment below.

Go Google

Google is using billboards to promote Google Apps.

Four simple messages will rotate every weekday for a month enticing people to "Go Google."

The outdoor ads are placed in heavily traveled urban areas. But you won't see them in Columbus. You'll have to go to Chicago, San Francisco, Boston and New York.

If you're not traveling to those areas here is a peak of a couple billboards.

Music In Advertising

Some commercials are my favorite solely based on the music that plays in the spot.  In fact, sometimes I like the music so much I go to iTunes and download the song to add to my collection.  

Music in advertising is becoming big business for brand and artists alike.  That's why Billboard and Adweek have teamed together for the 1st Music & Advertising conference in New York City. Interested?  It's not too late to register for the event that runs June 4-5.

Pharrell Williams will host a Q&A session to share how he took his career to new heights by translating his music into big brand opportunities.  Below is one of my favorites that Pharrell did for Converse. Very catchy tune!  Yep, I downloaded this one.

Produced By Pharrell - Santogold, Julian Casablancas, N.E.R.D.

Do you have any favorites? Send me a comment. I'm always looking to add to my music collection.

Phasing Out the Pontiac Brand

It's no secret that GM has had its share of financial hardships.  But yesterday the economic noose got even tighter.  GM announced that by 2010 Pontiac, one of GMs longest running brands, will become history. 

Introduced by GM in 1926, the Series 6-27  marketed Pontiac as the

 athletic brand which specialized in mainstream performance vehicles.  However, the brand actually existed before its public introduction and dates back to 1893 when the Pontiac Bugging Company in Pontiac, Michigan was established.

It's sad to see Pontiac close its doors because a big part of America's history will be closing its doors right along with it.

Did This SNL Spoof Actually Increase Yogurt Sales?

To hear video without music you'll have to turn site music off - music is in the ReverbNation Box located at bottom right hand column.


Sure the spoof is not an ad. But SNL's skit, featuring Kristen Wiig, has copied some of the ad's lines verbatim. Imitation is flattery and in this case, profitable.  Since the series of spoofs, Activia yogurt has continued to fly off grocery store shelves and profits continue to grow.

Perhaps SNL is creating product awareness to a untapped target market, or because the skit is just so darn funny people remember it and pay more attention when they see the actual commercial.  Or maybe because of the laughter created by the spoof, the product now drums up positive feelings and they want to buy it.

Whatever the reason may be, I hope SNL continues this series of spoofs.  Kristen Wiig make a hilarious Jamie Lee Curtis!

Brown Bag Marketing and a Free Burrito

This Sunday's Dispatch included a Chipotle brown paper bag.  

The bag simply says - "How 'Bout A Burrito?"

Bring in this bag by March 21st and we'll fill it with one of our giant, gourmet burritos FREE!

Chipotle

Looks like Chipotle is doing this in select markets across the country. A quick Google search showed that they recently did this in the Dayton, OH and Phoenix, AZ markets.  Possibly a new market research study?

This is great marketing for so many reasons:

1. It had to be cheap - small lunch size brown paper bags (for 32 packs of 500 it only cost $12.60 each through Fetpak Inc.)
2. Printing in black ink is very inexpensive
3. Visitors getting a free burrito will most likely purchase other items - drink, chips and guac, or other food entrees
4. Creates awareness for Chipotle
5. Putting brown bag in paper is cheaper than paying a mail house to deliver promotional piece

Office Max is another brown bag marketer offering 15% off of everything in the larger brown shopping bag in the past.

The amazing realization for me though was when I pulled the bag out of the paper I immediately knew it was Chipotle even though the Chipotle logo was hidden by the fold in the bag.  Now that is great brand recognition!

Hope you found yours in the paper before you threw it in the recycling pile.  Enjoy!  All those calories don't seem as bad when you are eating for free!  Hey @CherylHarrison, maybe we can use the bags when we meet for lunch this week!

Did Kroger Finally Leave the 80's?

This week I've noticed a change in Kroger advertising.  It seems as is they might have finally decided to update their brand approach.  The ever so familiar voice over Kroger used for over 20 years has seemed to have disappeared from the spots running this week - both on radio and TV.  

Looks like their new strategy is more a personal approach and includes customer testimonials sharing their stories of savings and comfort with the store.  The new TV spots even use the ever popular lower case, clean font.

Hip, Modern, Personal.  It was time for a change.  I like it.  Have you noticed?  What do you think?  Would love to hear your opinion. 

Lenten Marketing?

Today marks the first day of Lent.  An important season in the Catholic faith.  During the season of Lent Catholics prepare for Easter and one way they do that is to eat more fish.

So is it coincidence that yesterday I received a marketing postcard from BoneFish Grill, or a smart target marketing tactic?  Are they using Lent as a marketing angle?  Wendy's does.  If you've noticed, Wendy's only has fish sandwiches around the Lent/Spring season and they use advertising dollars to make everyone aware they do.

Maybe some market research revealed to BoneFish Grill that I was Catholic, but nonetheless it made me want to eat there.  I have made a mental note to make reservations for the restaurant one of these Fridays within the next 40 days.  

Bang Bang Shrimp appetizer, here I come.

Peanut Butter Mess

The peanut butter scare has spoiled a staple in American comfort food.  Because of the tainted peanut butter at the Peanut Corp. of America in Georgia sales have dropped 23%, a number of schools across the country have stopped offering PB&J sandwiches, and pantries in households everywhere no longer stock creamy or chunky jars on their shelves.

Cause and Effect Can Have a Real Affect

Because of this serious action, makers and sellers of peanut butter from organic brands to commercial brands like Skippy, Jif and Peter Pan have had to become very reactionary.  In order to boost consumer confidence and defuse the situation, all makers had to put a crisis communication plan in place.  

Creating key messaging, maker web sites offer immediate statements reassuring the public that they do not use ingredients from the tainted company and that their product is safe to consume. Today, I even heard a new commercial for Jif where they immediately used messaging to put the viewers mind at rest letting them know their peanut butter is safe.  They had to use advertising dollars that either weren't planned or planned for something else.

All of this reminded me of my days in my past job.  Even though we were in Ohio, if something happened in another part of the country that was in any way comparable to our organization, we would feel the effects and needed to diminish the situation is quickly as possible.  Because of that uncontrollable threat, I created a crisis communication plan to handle any possible scenario - one we created or one that was handed to us because of the actions of someone else.

Crisis communication plans are so important.  I'm sure the peanut butter makers can attest to that.  These plans help keep you organized at a time when everything else around you is not so organized.  

Tomorrow I will post some crisis communication ideas to help you in a possible time of need. Until then, I'm going to make myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich because Jif reassured me that everything is just fine (and delicious) with their product.

Best Sup.... Bowl (Big Game) Commercial

Being a huge SNL fan the best commercial had to be it MacGruber, I mean Pepsuber.

Missed it?  See three different versions here.  The second one is what aired but the third one is ridiculously funny!

Also liked the Doritos crystal ball commercial too.  Funny stuff!

Valentines Day... Everyone's favorite hallmark holiday is coming up!

So, maybe Valentine's Day is one of those manufactured holidays, but don't be a hater.  Bring on the sappiness, spoil your significant other and treat yourself too.  This year you can avoid the crowds of happy couples and v-day suckers and enjoy a chef prepared meal at home.  And if you are really feeling generous, pick up some flowers to add an elegant touch to your take home cuisine.  The Culinary Table has everything you need for the perfect night in.. Call and order yours now, you will be so glad you did when the Valentines panic sets in on February 13.  

Call  488.3714 to order dinner and roses to be picked up at The Culinary Table on February 14, 2009.
Valentines Menu

    * Parmesan Pesto Canapes    * Bleu Boat Salad, Romaine Wedge with Crispy Smoked Bacon, Toasted Walnuts, Crumbled Maytag Bleu Cheese and a Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette.    * Creste Di Gali, moon shaped pasta, with choice of Delicate Lump Crab Meat or Tuscan Grilled Chicken Breast tossed in a Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Blush Sauce    * Olive Oil & Sea Salt Roasted Asparagus    * Mozzarella Basil Foccacia Bread    * Decadent Chocolate Lava Cakes with Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice-Cream
Children's meals also available.  Orders required 24 hours in advance of Valentines Day. Dinners available to serve immediately or reheat with our simple instructions.  Please have credit card information or gift certificate ready at time of order)
Dinner is $45 / person.
9 rose arrangement $50.  Other floral gifts available, contact Natural Designs at 614.395.3466.  Please place order by February 5th.

Brand Advertising on Tees

This week was my daughter's 14th birthday.  It was no surprise to me that some of the hot items on both her birthday and Christmas lists was apparel from some of her favorite stores. It's crazy to think how popular t-shirts labeled with store names are.  

I wondered how, what started out as an undergarment, became such a broadcasting fashion statement.  I did a little research on how and when t-shirt advertising started.  It appears t-shirt advertising started with rock n' roll.  In the 1960's and 1970's rock and roll bands realized they could make quite a bit of extra money selling t-shirts with their bands name on them while further promoting their band.  It wasn't until the 1980's that designers and stores started placing their brands on t-shirts as a status symbol.  

T-shirt status symbol is still important to teens.  More than half of my daughter's closet is filled with Pink, Abercrombie, Hollister, and American Eagle.  All the kids proudly display them daily.  Pretty smart idea, people are actually buying clothes from your store (for a pretty hefty price too) and then wearing it all over.  Teens are actually paying to advertise for their favorite stores.  What a good gig!

Any idea what store was the first to advertise on their t-shirts?  My guess is Gap but not sure. Feel free to comment any ideas.

Some of our favorite rock t-shirts.

Social Media, Is it the New Marketing?

The other day I had lunch with a friend who I haven't seen in quite some time.  It was great catching up and sharing stories about our families and busy lives.  Also, because we are both in marketing, we spent quite a bit of time talking about marketing and social media.

My friend is the marketing director for The Diamond Cellar.  Over the years The Diamond Cellar has relied heavily on traditional media, mostly radio to market their message.  While this has been successful, they are now beginning to look at non-traditional avenues, mostly social media.

The Diamond Cellar is experimenting in Facebook and just recently built a products page.  You can see it here.  While there, why not become a fan, we did.  They are linking their page with the Facebook pages of the product lines they carry in their jewelry store to maximize their exposure.  Smart move!

I told her about Twitter and the benefits it has brought columbus imPRessions.  By burning our feed through twitterfeed, we direct more visitors to our site, and create awareness to our media followers on stories we want to get in the news.  It's almost like having a PR coordinator on staff sending out press releases on our behalf.  I highly recommended it for the Diamond Cellar.

I also talked to her about having a blog.  We strongly feel blogs are important for business. Because of the economy, potential client's are becoming more cautious about signing a contract so quickly.  With this in mind, we always encourage potential clients to visit our blog.  This is where they learn more about us.  Not only professionally but personally as well.  On our blog we share our personality, our styles and our feelings.  Potential clients start to develop a personal relationship with us on-line which makes them more comfortable and confident to do business together.  

I think a blog would be a great opportunity for the Diamond Cellar too.  They could include personal stories from customers, introduce staff, highlight product lines and the designers, use polling to get customer feedback, advertise exclusive promotions, and provide special offers to blog followers.  This would develop deeper customer relationships, give customers an interactive experience and can also serve as great market research.

We both left the lunch charged and ready to tackle the social media world. So charged it prompted this post and the word of mouth marketing for The Diamond Cellar.  The opportunities are endless and we continually learn new things each day.  

Jen, if the Diamond Cellar needs some social media pointers, let me know.  Would love to help and learn of other social media opportunities with you along the way.

Know Any Brides? ....

Isn't it amazing how so many in the online world "check out" for the holidays... blog hits are down, emails slow, and you hear a lot of "we'll look into that after the 1st of the year."  It is truly wonderful that some take time to focus on non-virtual friends and family, but I also want to make sure none of our readers missed the announcement about... the Sample Sale at La Jeune Mariee this weekend!

So many  engagements happen  between Thanksgiving and New Years (why is that, dudes?) and the 40 - 60% discounts on designer gowns should not be missed by any those new brides to be!  I won't even mention terms like "brides on a budget" or "recessionista",  as so many (including the media) are inundated with these "econonowns." (I clearly just made that one up).  But see our La Jeune Mariee Dispatch mention on Jan. 1 -fashion reporter Kristy Eckert explains this trend and mentions the sale at our favorite Worthington boutique.

Even if you are not a bride, doesn't everyone love to give useful advice when it comes to weddings, or is it just the ladies who are reminiscing their own wedding planning days? Anyway,  hurry and send this link to any brides you know- they'll be so happy you may be invited to be in the wedding party....  http://www.LaJeuneMariee.com/samplesale

2009 NonProfit Marketing Ideas

A new year is here. A time for change, new beginnings, re-organization. New marketing ideas.

It's now more than ever that nonprofits need a strong marketing and PR strategy to stand out above the rest and capture the public's attention. There is a way to do just that and it doesn't have to cost much. You just need to be willing to think beyond the box, dive into social media, and come up with multi-media campaigns that simultaneously attract more individuals for a greater ROI.

Need an example: OK, here's one - a multi-media campaign idea. In our past life we worked for the local chapter of a very well known nonprofit organization. It was summer of '07 and we were preparing for our next fiscal year which would start in September. The regions were struggling to make budget and something was needed to create buzz and excitement in the organization. So Colleen and I put our creativity to work. We needed a call to action with a hook and excitement. During our brainstorming, we realized our chapter would be celebrating its 25th anniversary. We had it - buzz, excitement and a call to action!

A multi-media campaign was born inviting everyone to "become a part of the celebration" giving them a handful of calls to action in which they could do that. The messaging, and branding became the center for every facet of the organization - volunteer, outreach, program, development/fundraising, and of course, marketing and PR. Various targeted and strategic marketing pieces were delivered through Internet, social networking, PR, mailings, email, word of mouth, and events all simultaneously so various groups were hearing the same message but in a variety of ways.

Success! So successful, the chapter continued the campaign after our departure using the exact same strategy, messaging and branding we created. In fact, they are still using the campaign, well past the 25th anniversary mark. However, we would have recommended concluding the campaign when the 25th anniversary truly came to an end in September '08. Continuing something passed its point can be misleading or become tiresome.

All of this is easy, achievable. affordable and fun. Need assistance? columbus imPRessions can help. Just email us at info@columbusimpressions.com.