Geico Commercial

The Geico commercial with the stack of money that is watching people is one of the most clever and "cute" ads that is on TV right now.  The little stack of money with the googley eyes combined with the catchy remixed Michael Jackson song creates an entertaining commercial.  Although I enjoy watching it and will even wait in my car for the radio spot to finish, I wonder if it is effective.  

The commercial is very well known.  I even downloaded the song that plays in the background.  However, it has not prompted me to switch my car insurance to Geico or even look at their website.  

This leads me to the question:  Is a catchy ad effective in generating business? or is there more to a commercial?   

I believe that an ad is more effective if it is clever, catchy, and entertaining, but I think there is more to it than that.  There should be some kind of direct incentive for going on to the website.  There cannot just be the chance that you could save a little bit of cash by switching to Geico.  There needs to be more than that... 

Facebook Is Turning Into Myspace...

Myspace started out as a social networking site, but it seems that it has become more of a marketing tool for bands etc...  Facebook came in right at the time and was exclusively for college students, so there would be no marketing.  There has been so much spam on Facebook lately that it seems less and less like a network.  Pages are created and people become fans of these pages and invite their friends to become fans of the page also.  My notification box is becomming full of these messages telling me to take this survey about Twilight or become a fan of cuddeling or become a fan of Reses Penutbutter Cups.  It is getting old...

Something new will surely come out soon and basically eliminate Facebook.  It seems like there is a cycle here.  A site is made that makes it really easy to communicate with friends, and as soon as it becomes popular it is monetized with advertising.

Product Placement

I think that the current type of marketing for television will not last for much longer.  The young generation has grown up with DVR's and has the ability to fast forward commercials.  I hardly ever watch any live television.  I will rarely see what movies are coming out and almost never watch a commercial.  I think that the rest of my generation is somewhat the same way and younger people watch even fewer commercials.  I think that DVR's will become a staple in most homes very soon.

Product placement seems to be more prevalent in both standard and reality T.V. shows.  MTV's new show "The Phone" seems to be a massive ad for some new AT&T cell phone.  They use it to take pictures, and are constantly talking on it.  And the narrator specifically says the name of the phone.  Also, on Survivor, the cast watches videos of their loved ones on a new T-Mobile phone.  On Prison Break, the cast somehow always gets a brand new car (from where, I don't know?).  They rip around corners in a Cadillac Escalade with the logos flashing etc...

I don't know how effective these ads are, but they definitely reach the people that watch the shows.  

Apple Interface

I believe that the current Apple Macbook is a great product and has few design problems. It is a great starting point and has many features that could be added onto it. One ability that the current Macbook is lacking is the ability to be easily integrated into other electronic devices.

First, I would make it so you could wirelessly sync your iPhone or other smart phone into it. It would connect via bluetooth and you would be able to transfer data and music more easily. There would also be a program or application that would be a kind of interface for the link. It would give you the option to backup data on both devices. It would also allow you to take music off of your phone (or your friend's phone) and put it on the computer. This feature would make the synchronizing of your phone and computer much easier and more efficient. It would also eliminate the need for an extra cable.

The next feature would allow the computer to use a phone (most likely an iPhone) to access the internet from anywhere. Although this is currently possible, you need to have a device that will allow you to use the phone companies' network. This innovation would allow you to connect to the internet more easily. There would be no need for an extra device and you would not need to add any extra data plans onto your current phone plan.

The last innovation that I would add to the current Macbook would be the ability to automatically sync with your home entertainment system. You would be able to wirelessly connect to your T.V., sound system, DVR, and home computer. You could more easily use a T.V. set as you computer screen with no cables, and music etc. would play through your stereo. You could also sync and backup with your home computer easily. If synced to a DVR, you could transfer shows onto your laptop and watch them anywhere you go, and by connecting it to a wireless mouse and keyboard and using a TV as a monitor, you could completely eliminate the need for a home computer/Desktop.

I think that people would easily adopth this new technology. Life would be so much easier if we could eliminate or combine devices. Also, the elimination of cables in other electronic equipment could be made possible by this new technology.

Green/Enviornmentally Conscious "Trend"?

In my business and professional communication class we were asked to invent a product or service and pitch it to the class using Monroe's motivational sequence. I was actually a little bit surprised by what some of my classmates came up with:

More than fifty percent of the class came up with some product or service that improved gas mileage, helped you recycle, or was in some way, good for the environment. Some of the products were far fetched (like a flying car). and some were a bit more novel and simple (like a glass refrigerator so you don't have to open it to see what is inside). About %30 percent of the products reduced fuel consumption, like an exhaust compressor that turns the unburned exhaust gas back into fuel.

These products are all interesting, but the common marketing trend is very clear and potentially useful. The way that fifty percent of the students marketed their products involved sustainability and a kind of scare tactic that we are killing the earth. The marketing implications of this are very clear; people do not want to kill the earth. I think it will be good to keep this in mind as I start my career.

Is Twitter a Social Network, or Just a Marketing Tool?

I haven't decided yet whether Twitter is going to be useful for social networking or not. I know for sure though, that Tiwtter is a very effective marketing tool for celebrities and companies.

I only have a few "followers" on Twitter, so it is not very useful for myself or keeping my friends updated. It is far more useful for me to see follow people on my favorite T.V. shows or my favorite musicians. I am constantly updated about what new project they are working on, when a CD is coming out, or just what they are doing. If I want to tell my friends something that is really exciting, I would just send out a mass text, which makes Twitter not as interesting or exciting.

From a celebrity's standpoint, Twitter is a really good source for free advertising. Depending how many followers someone has, they can send out hundreds of thousands of free "ads" every day. I think it is important to not just use Twitter as a source of advertising though, otherwise followers could become numb to what you have to say.

Whether Twitter is just a marketing tool or a valid social network, it is becoming extremely popular.

The "Long Tail" of Music

Last semester in information technology we learned about a phenomenon called the long tail. It describes the shape of the curve made on a graph. The horizontal axis (in this case) consists of musicians, and the vertical axis consists of how popular the musician is. It creates a sort of long tail off to the left. There are very few artists who are extremely popular (Kanye West, Timbaland, Lady Gaga...) and a ton of artists who are barely popular. These artists who are barely popular individually don't make up much of the graph or total popularity, but combined (because there are so many) they make up a huge segment of the total music industry.

The long tail has become even longer recently because of new technology and how easy it is to make music. Anyone with a mac book that has garage band can create music very easily. The small microphone on laptops works well for recording vocals/instruments. Now, nearly anyone can create music and put it on a site like myspace. Add a little bit of talent to this and maybe $1000 spent at guitar center and you have a very long tail with high quality music. Anyone that has a desire to create original music and put it on myspace can. Very easily.

This long tail of "musicians" may lack talent and equipment that some of the mainstream artists have and more importantly lack the money required to front a major production.