Ten GY&K team members weighed in on this year’s Super Bowl marketing.

In our office there’s more speculation about Super Bowl advertising than about who will win the actual game. That’s partially because we have a lot of confident Patriots fans, but mostly because we’re marketing geeks and there’s no better night to watch brands flex their marketing muscles.

With that in mind, we gathered Super Bowl advertising insights and predictions from a few GY&K team members:

Looking forward to the big “Ferris Bueller” tease with Matthew Broderick! Great pre-air buzz, gone viral and created tons of pressure for a sequel to one of the seminal coming-of-age comedies of all time! There’s a big secret here and lots of speculation about the advertiser. Any one else think this is a cool idea? Anyone..Bueller?

Pat Griffin
Chairman

I love how a few years ago Google cleverly told a story through the eyes of someone actually using their service (“Parisian Love”). I’ll be anxious to see if more brands use this tactic, which I think is a more effective method to actually encourage product usage, as opposed to the typical off-the-wall attention grabbing spots.

Travis York
President

There’s no doubt that social media integration within branded Super Bowl ad campaigns has been growing rapidly over the past several years. But this year, analysts are dubbing Super Bowl XLVI as ‘The Year Social Media Changed the Game.’  USA Today and Facebook are co-branding an app that features all the national ads that will appear during the game, along with a five-star rating button that let’s Facebook users judge, share, comment, and spread the ads — and their reactions — as they watch. Even the Super Bowl itself has received a social media facelift with their very own social media command center manned with a team of social media strategists analyzing, optimizing and responding to digital fan chatter across Facebook, Twitter and other social media channels.

Liz Steinhardt Pollock
Public Relations Manager

I thought last year’s Doritos Crash the Super Bowl spots were hysterical and these user generated gems have ranked #1 on the USA TODAY Ad Meter for two of the last three years. Based on that, I’m excited to see what spot wins this year. I love the social media aspect of this promo requiring very few marketing dollars. The stats are awesome – almost 500,000 votes for 5 videos, 2.7MM+ likes, 200K+ conversations. Plus, this year’s winner gets to work with Andy Samberg’s Lonely Island on a future Doritos project. Mmm Cheesy!!!

Shana Malik
Director of Media Relations

Chevy is trying to take advantage of the fact that Americans no longer simply ‘watch’ TV. Instead, they interact with it, experience it, vote on it, comment on it, tweet about it, etc. So understanding this, Chevy created its very own app helping consumers interact with the Super Bowl like never before. Users of the app receive a special license plate code, and during the Super Bowl Chevy will air commercials with the winning code. The app also allows members to login and post everything to Facebook or Twitter, encouraging them to share the app with their friends and followers. Chevy didn’t just decide to advertise to America’s largest television audience; they made a strategic decision to start a dialogue with them. I believe this is truly a winning approach.

Mike Stevens
Senior Marketing Planner

Looking forward to seeing if Bud-Light pushes their new product “Bud-Light Platinum.” It’s advertised as the same light beer but with a higher ABV at 6.0%. Bud Light is a favorite for getting some laughs during the big game, so I’ll be curious if they extend the Bud Light brand and theme to Bud-Light Platinum, or if they give it a new and distinct feel from the core BL brand. Anheuser Busch is always a player when it comes to humorous Super Bowl advertising, but I expect them to remain true to their roots and feature the more emotional Clydesdale spots in some fashion too.

Mike Giovinelli
Account Supervisor

This week I finally pulled the trigger on canceling my cable TV service. Fortunately, the Super Bowl will be streamed live online for just the second time this year. I’m anxious to see how advertising will be handled in the online realm and if it differs from the standard TV broadcast.

Ben Peirce
Multimedia Producer

Psyched to see that some of my favorite concepts will be back, especially the “office monkeys” from careerbuilder.com. Love that one! But the biggest shift to watch is how brands will further integrate across all mediums and dive deeper into the social well. To quote a great article from Harvard Business Review, “The TV spot has become the trailer for something bigger, broader and more interactive.”

Sophia Cigliano
SVP Client Services and Account Planning

I will be looking for how brands embrace the “second screen” phenomenon. Will advertisers be able to convince football fans to take their eyes off the game to watch more ads on their phones? More importantly, will the additional content be worth it?

Andrew Harris
Associate Creative Director

One of the most amusing games to play at Super Bowl parties is to guess what brand/product is being advertised before it is mentioned by name or a logo is shown.  Are companies trying to create memorable connections between the :30 spots and their brand, or are they trying to make the most over-the-top and most talked-about commercial? Also, I look forward to NOT logging on to GoDaddy.com afterwards to see more of Danica Patrick.

Nathaniel Grimes
Business Development Coordinator

Last Saturday comedian Louis CK released his latest special, “Live at the Beacon Theater,” exclusively on his website as a livestream and digital download. Within days, he had sold over 100,000 copies and the tech/media blogosphere were quick to write the usual boilerplate posts about how this was revolutionizing the future of sharing/shopping/listening/watching as we know it. Louis had circumvented the “evil” of iTunes/Amazon and the giant media companies, and created something for himself.

What many of these publications ignored in their final analysis was the most important reason Louis sold so many copies in such a short time: he is one of the most popular and respected comedians of our time. That is not a reputation you can manufacture overnight. If the product wasn’t worth the consumers’ time, then he might not have sold 10 copies. Even if he hadn’t released outtakes for free on YouTube, or received Twitter cosigns from other famous comedians, most people who bought the special knew what they were going to get. The comedy of Louis CK is reliable.

When marketers choose to promote a specific product or brand, they need to ask themselves if their efforts are worthwhile. Does it make sense to spend time and energy pushing something that will ultimately disappoint consumers? Trust is an important piece of the sales cycle. Another aspect of trust is respect for consumers’ privacy and property. This is part of what drives people away from the big media companies. Price being equal, a direct, unrestricted download/livestream from a comedian’s website might be more appealing than a limited download from iTunes or Amazon, considering that a larger percentage of the profits go directly to the artist. Buying this special from the website was simple (just a couple clicks) and allowed consumers to purchase the special without ever having to enter a password, as the site incorporated Paypal without requiring a sign in for the payment service.

What Louis CK did was special, for a few reasons. One, it made consumers feel empowered by offering a low price and an attractive, alternative distribution method while still maintaining a profitable model.  Radiohead tried an independent distribution strategy with their 2007 release “In Rainbows,” when they allowed consumers to pay whatever they thought the album was worth. Judging from the profits and reviews, critics certainly thought much higher of the album than purchasers. Credit to the band for trying something new, but Louis is showing that it is possible to be just a little more pragmatic without losing the spirit of the enterprise.

The second reason this release was notable was the clear path from social sharing to action (in this case, purchasing). As of this writing, the special’s web page has 32,000 Facebook likes and over 12,100 people have Tweeted directly from an application embedded in the page. These numbers do not take into account all the other times this site was linked or discussed on countless social pages. Louis made it really EASY to buy the special. This allowed him to take advantage of existing networks to spread the word and, the simple call to action.

Lastly, Louis did not abandon traditional techniques. He put out teaser “outtakes” videos (to encourage sampling) and he pounded the late night talk show pavement to promote the film. He included personalized messaging on the website that sounded like something Louis CK the person would actually say. Even his email marketing was done in his own unique style. Real innovation in marketing, technology or any other industry is a combination of experimentation and relying on proven techniques.

Nathaniel Grimes is the Business Development Coordinator at GY&K. Connect with him on Twitter: @Nathaniel_g

At GY&K, we believe it’s important to consider the entire ‘consumer lifecycle’ when developing a marketing strategy and plan.   While awareness advertising can have a positive impact on the sales of product or service, it’s also important to remember the opportunity to drive sales through loyalty, retention and advocacy tactics.

One notable example of our work in this area is the Lottery Replay! program. This was the first program in the country that allowed existing players to ‘Replay’ their non-winning tickets online for additional chances to win. But many other companies are realizing the value of taking care of their current consumers, and fostering relationships that often result in future sales.

My colleague Brady Sadler was at Loudon this past weekend for one of the NASCAR events and noticed a special hospitality tent for Toyota owners only. According to a NASCAR release, this program began two years ago as an attempt at offering Toyota owners free parking at races. In 2011, the Toyota Owners Hospitality program is a full customer loyalty program at 15 NASCAR races and at NHRA races across the country. Toyota Racing and local dealers created an opportunity to reward their customers, and one dealership in Tennessee reported sales as a direct result of this promotion. For the NH races, a local dealership created a Facebook event page to publicize the Hospitality tent and Toyota Racing promoted it through their social media outlets, to maximize the program’s reach. For a Toyota owner, this tent was probably an unexpected perk, and a nice gesture on a hot summer day at the races. For Toyota and the local dealers, it was another chance to cement the relationship with Toyota owners, and to perhaps plant a seed of envy in the minds of other car owners.

What are some of the best examples you have seen of companies investing in consumer relationships, beyond simple awareness?

Nathaniel Grimes is the Business Development Coordinator at Griffin York & Krause

Marketers understand that ‘going green’ is more than just a fad; it’s an essential business practice that consumers respond to.  However, companies are embracing the green movement in many different ways.  For example, certain brands like Ben & Jerry’s and retailers like Walmart have been working on this for a long time.  They have also recognized the importance of connecting with college students, a demographic that continues to aggressively embrace to green movement.

According to an Advertising Age article, the integrated marketing manager at Ben & Jerry’s, Noelle Pirnie, has said that, “These aren’t just ad strategies; [being green] is built into the way we do business.”

In fact, the company has shown its commitment to the environment by measuring the company’s CO₂ emissions, purchasing clean renewable energy, and implementing its “Lick Global Warming” campaign.  “Lick Global Warming” is a game that people can play that teaches them how to reduce their CO₂ emissions, and puts pressure on the government to join in the fight against global warming.  Another way that Ben & Jerry’s spread word of its environmentally friendly efforts was by being the sponsor of the “Campus Consciousness Tour” that educated students on global warming.  The company also generated buzz by placing a 1,140-pound, four-foot-tall container of Baked Alaska flavored ice cream in front of the Capitol to raise awareness on the damages that drilling in the wildlife preserve would cause.

Throughout the years, Ben & Jerry’s has been truthful in its efforts to go green.  The company used unique methods to reach out to its customers, the government, and society with the goal of exposing the dangers of global warming.  Not only did its marketing efforts promote the company’s attempts to help the environment, it also persuaded others to join in the movement.

Walmart has also become a leader in the green movement. The retailer has made significant progress in establishing more energy efficient stores.  Some efforts include installing LED lighting, energy-saving HVAC systems and more efficient refrigeration systems.  New stores are also being constructed with recycled materials and white roofs to reflect the heat.  Walmart would eventually like the labels on all of its products to include information regarding the environmental costs associated with producing them.  This encourages suppliers to be more energy efficient and it sways consumers into buying products that are less harmful for the environment.

Has your company made an effort to go green?  If so, how have you leveraged this as part of your overall marketing strategy?  If not, what are some of the challenges that have prevented you from going green?

Picture Taken from:

http://freshome.com/2009/02/03/going-green-inside-the-home/

Jenaleigh Landers is an intern with Griffin York & Krause.  She is currently a full-time Business Major at Saint Anselm College.

“I plan to make Podcaster for the Android operating system. At least there, I will be welcomed instead of being walked all over.” -Alex Sokirynsky, developer of Podcaster

Many software developers have experienced issues with Apple because of the strict and sometimes inconsistent policies they maintain when it comes to the App Store approval process.  Other operating systems such as Google’s Android and Nokia’s Symbian offer a more open alternative for App development, but they do not have a hugely popular platform (like iTunes) or the extensive content to seriously compete with Apple.

With the recent release of the iPad, predicted to be the leader in the tablet market, there are more reasons than ever for developers to deal with Apple’s policies.  The iPad’s larger screen and more diverse and functional touchscreen capabilities promise to make it the best device for Apps yet, but will the iPad’s advantages in market share and functionality be enough to convert some very unhappy developers to finally give in and build for the platform?

This graph shows an increase in the percentage of new App projects that were started for Apple in January, when the iPad was first unveiled, but does not specify if the buzz over the iPad resulted in more Apps developed by current iPhone OS developers or if some have been converted from Android or other places.

While some may think that modifying an App to appease Apple is not a big deal, others, such at Tim Bray, former Sun Microsystems employee and new hire to Google’s Android team, feel differently. He has been quoted saying Apple offers a “sterile Disney-fied walled garden surrounded by sharp-toothed lawyers” and went on to simply and strongly say, “I hate it.”

If you were a developer and had to choose, would you rather have the freedom to create an App on your own terms and market it to a smaller audience, or conform to Apple’s rules in exchange for access to their built-in market?

Tim Allan is an intern with GY&K.  He is currently a full-time student at Plymouth State University, graduating this spring with a major in Business Administration.

Recently, internet users all over the globe have been fascinated by the Web’s latest hit, Chatroulette.

Like a mix of StumbleUpon, Skype, and YouTube, Chatroulette randomly pairs you with another video chatter from anywhere on the planet. Spend five minutes on Chatroulette and you will come across all types of people- men, women, children, singles, groups of friends on one screen, public figures, and some of the strangest characters the Internet has to offer. Once users have been paired, either side can click “Next” to spin the imaginary roulette wheel and instantly be partnered face to face with someone new.

Naturally this new phenomenon has many marketers and brands wondering how they can take advantage of the platform. Here are a few considerations:

1) An important aspect of advertising and sponsorship is associating your name with a positive experience. Often marketers will link their names to hit shows, music, events and personalities. Chatroulette does not fall in any of these buckets. While many people enjoy the experience of using the site, some are disgusted by the high level of weirdness, nudity, and insults on the site. Realize that you will be right there alongside some very questionable and inappropriate material if you chose to participate. It may not be an experience that you want associated with your brand.

2) Some may be tempted to stream TV style ads on repeat, but this may not be worth the time or effort. Unlike TV, there is no way to target specific demographics. Chatroulette is completely random in assignments and users come from all over the globe, making geography another challenge. In addition, streaming content would not capitalize on the “chat” aspect of Chatroulette. Users expect to connect and interact with people, therefore anything other than that would be considered interruption advertising.

3) Product placement is another way brands and marketers may think they can benefit from Chatroulette, but again this is not the best platform for that type of marketing. By design, you can only reach one person at a time on Chatroulette. Sites such as UStream.tv allow for large audiences to tune into one channel, which would be a much better location for a celebrity endorsement or product placement. On Chatroulette, you are just as likely to come across Joe Schmo as you are Joe Montana. There are many rumors of celebrities on Chatroulette, but this POST by Vayner Media shows that most are fakes.

Many enhancements could be made to Chatroulette and the platform will certainly evolve. However, until it is possible to narrow down the audience you will chat with, it is not a great choice for most brands. The only viable player at this stage may be a large, multinational brand interested in casting a very wide net. In this case they could run a contest or tie their activity on Chatroulette to another platform to extend the experience. Even this would be very difficult to control, so in my mind Chatroulette is currently a tool best reserved for personal use.

Do you have any ideas on how Chatroulette could be used by marketers?

Tim Allan is an intern with GY&K.  He is currently a full-time student at Plymouth State University, graduating this spring with a major in Business Administration.

As we wait to get our hands on the new Apple iPad, it’s interesting to see how some of the existing players in the tablet space are marketing themselves. 

Recently I came across a very cool magazine ad for the Amazon Kindle.  I was reading an article in Forbes that started on one page and actually ended on a Kindle.  Well, not a real Kindle but an ad for one.  This was really clever and I have to thank Sanjay Parekh for posting a picture of it here. 

It’s ironic that one of the most innovative magazine ads I’ve seen in a while promotes a device that many feel will eventually kill the traditional print platform.

It’s that time again (alright, it’s actually about 3 weeks past that time, but who’s counting).  Our GY&K podcast, the Theater of Public Influence, is getting set to record our 2^nd annual “Best of the Year” Episode.  This is where we take a look at all the things creating buzz in the past year and decide what things had the biggest impact.  The podcast team has pulled together some nominees in each category but now we need your help. Please take a minute to fill out the survey posted here:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/N2DSCLM and cast your votes.  It only takes a minute and you’ll be helping us present more accurate results.  We want to get as many responses as possible so feel free to pass email this along to friends, post the link on Facebook, Tweet about it, stop random people in the street, hire a skywriter, etc.  But most importantly, take a minute to vote yourself.

Voting Criteria

This poll is a little different than your typical “best of” list because (at least for the entertainment categories) we’re less concerned with what you liked the most and more concerned with what you think had the biggest impact, created the most buzz, had the widest reach, etc.  So think about that as you cast your votes.  Don’t like our nominations? No problem, there’s a write-in option in each category.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/N2DSCLM

In a recent post we looked at the hype surrounding the new Apple tablet and the evolution of print media.  In the November Wired Magazine, there was an entire page dedicated to interactive advertisements, including a description of how to interact with select ads in that issue.   Anyone with an iPhone or Android-supported mobile device could download the free kooaba app and then receive instant product information by taking a picture of specific ads. 

I decided to download the app and give it a shot.  I started by snapping a picture of the Microsoft Office ad.  The app then verified the Microsoft ad and presented a few different options.  In this case it was tell a friend or watch a video.  I was a bit underwhelmed. 

Next I tried an ad for Victorinox Swiss Army knives.  This time there were many more choices.  In addition to the tell a friend option, I could Call the Victorinox Swiss Army (linking directly to the phone number), Send an E-mail to Victorinox, Buy Now (opened their Web site), Digg This, Reddit This, Twitter About This or Visit Website.  At this point I wondered why Microsoft didn’t give me the same options to connect through social networks or find more information. 

After trying a few more and getting mixed results, I felt like some brands really “got it” while others completely missed the opportunity. 

The lesson for marketers is to think through the user experience on any new platform you’re committing to even if it’s just a test.    

Since traditional magazines will probably be around for a bit longer, I’m sure we’ll see more attempts like this to engage readers with ads.  Augmented reality will certainly play a role and we’re likely to see much more of this technology used in 2010. 

How do you see magazine advertising evolving? 

Here’s a video of the kooba app in action.  This time the user is interested in learning more about a movie poster – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wysfEM6YgCM

The battle over the mobile advertising dollar stayed competitive throughout 2009, as advertisers still looked for the best ways to try and tap into this growing medium. While the economy stopped a number of companies from experimenting with mobile advertising in 2009, the technology to make it much more trackable has continued to evolve.  Two companies who are positioning themselves to benefit from the growth in mobile advertising are Google and Research in Motion (RIM).

On November 9, 2009 Google purchased AdMob for $750 million in order to expand their mobile advertising offering.  The deal is one of Google’s largest acquisitions behind the purchase of DoubleClick in 2008 for $3.1 billion.  The motivation behind Google’s purchase of AdMob was to help better justify the value of mobile advertising.  Google is now developing a number of new tools that help to create, serve and analyze mobile advertisements.  The acquisition will also allow Google’s clients to target mobile users within several ad formats thus helping the company to stay ahead of the competition in the mobile advertising arena. Google has already created an advertising environment online in which they dominate the competition, look for the company to do the same within the mobile medium.

The second company developing new technologies to improve the overall mobile advertising environment is Research in Motion (RIM), creator of the popular BlackBerry mobile device.  The company is launching a new service to allow developers of apps for its BlackBerry range of smartphones the ability to place advertisements within the apps they are developing.  The technology is supposed to be in effect within the first half of 2010.  The service will help to make mobile advertisements more quantifiable by giving access to data on ad impressions, clicks, conversions, and earnings, as well as integration in the Omniture Online Marketing Suite for more advanced analytics.   RIM’s next moves include integrating the ads and applications so that people can initiate calls from an ad, add a calendar event and contract entry. 

These two companies both understand how large the potential market is for mobile advertising.  One common complaint as to why companies have not started to place more dollars into mobile advertising was its inability to be measured.  Now, a number of companies have started to develop advertising platforms that offer both advertisers and companies a direct way to measure the ads they place within the mobile environment.  An important trend that continues to evolve with new technology is finding additional ways to justify advertising dollars.  Both RIM and Google view this trend as an important opportunity and they are investing a lot of dollars into technology that shows the effectiveness of mobile advertising because they know if you can prove it, you will profit from it.