Comcast vs. Verizon

Comcast learned a lesson with Xfinity. Get real with your consumer. Newer better, faster doesn't work. These two communications behemoths have been battling it aggressively for months. Bigger than the Superbowl, the 2001 election, Jen vs. Angelina - these campaigns for your cable dollar is being fought tooth and nail in advertising. Since Comcast introduced Xfinity, a new name for the same service that sounds like a strip club, Verizon has been having a field day with what has become a branding disaster for Comcast.

Here's Comcast's intro to Xfinity and their attempt at being NEWer, FASTer, and BETTer. And in doing so confusing consumers who aren't thrilled with them already and dating the brand by about 10 years.



Comcast fell flat with this attempt. Xfinity. Wowie. It's fast and amazing. Flashing lights and fancy graphics whizzing by. All to make you feel you are traveling at warp speed into an intergalactic world where things are, um, fast. It's just way to much hype for a product that really isn't any different than it was yesterday. It's boring. And it's been done before.

Verizon countered with exactly what most of us were thinking. Xfinity? X-phoeey. What does that even mean? Aren't you still Comcast with the same product line and faulty customer service?



What Verizon did right here was focus on their brand strategy. They used humor to connect to their consumers and were successful in saying something that was logical, honest and intelligent.

Finally, Comcast decided to put up their dukes, and fire back with anti Verizon messages that demand attention. Someone in the marketing department had an epiphany. They're calling it Get the Facts. A smart attempt to back track from the confusion of Xfinity - getting back to basics and focusing on the product offering. They are presenting the Get the Facts campaign with a humor not excess, something that makes consumers pay attention. The ads are supporting with a section on their website that directly compares the two communication giants feature by feature, as well as real stories from consumers who've been burned by Fios. The negative testimonials aren't my taste but the campaign is certainly a step in the right direction. The ads are pretty funny too. Check it out:

Imagery Matters. Think about it.

Good marketing should reflect the benefits that your product/service offers consumers. It should be simple but memorable, comfortable and unexpected. All business owners generally want the same thing; profitability. The ambitious ones recognize that to generate demand, they need to reach, connect with, and nurture a customer base. This is when many take a stab at what we call marketing. Yes, the water is warm, please jump in folks. But first, you should fully consider all the elements of that customer relationship.

How do you initially reach them? How do you keep in touch with them? Are you easy and pleasant to interact with? Meaning not just you, the human being, but your website, your parking lot, and your billing department. Who are you, what is the whole experience of interacting with you like and what is the augmented benefit that you have to offer? Even a commodity, like dry cleaning, can differentiate themselves with things like branding and more importantly, the cornerstone of any business, customer service.

All the time I see companies that are making an attempt (that’s the first step!) to connect but need go back to the marketing lab before shouting Eureka. Here’s an example of a direct mail piece from a local “emergency pet care clinic,” that needs a little help!

Problem #1. How do you know I have a pet? Problem #2. Your name is scary. Names can be overlooked, and relate directly to your brand. If you’re name is “Emergency Pet Care Clinic,” your prospects are envisioning running red lights at 90 miles an hour with poor Fluffy in the back seat impaled with a foreign object. Your name is part of an experience that people don’t want to have. (NOTE: I’ve later found out this Emergency Pet Clinic is part of a larger practice called, West Chester Veterinary Medical Center. Well, why didn’t you say so???)

Problem #3 This piece’s problems are furthered by the imagery. Your customers are pet lovers who come to you to keep their pet healthy, then go home and rub their bellies, throw a ball in the backyard, go for a walk. These are the real benefits of your service. Don’t show photos of doctors in scrubs operating on some unidentifiable and presumably four legged patient. Really, no one wants to see that. Oh, and the card is red. Not a good color for anything medical related.

Problem #4 TMI. Delivering too much information to people before they want it or ask for it is annoying. Don’t list services that your audience may or may not be interested in. At this point in your relationship with someone, it doesn’t matter whether or not you do diagnostics and ultrasounds. You want to introduce yourself, or reintroduce whatever it is your offering, and then be prepared for the follow up in the event one of your recipients is interested. If someone wants to investigate your specific offerings, they’ll check your website, which you did include. Nice work.

Thanks for keeping those puppies healthy and cute!

Why my Oral Surgeon is the best in Philadelphia

I admit it, I'm an evangelist. July 17th, I had my wisdom teeth removed. (Hence my blogging hiatus. That and it being AUGUST.) I am now 3 wisdom teeth lighter and absolutely a fan of my oral surgeon, Dr. Otto Tidwell. The best relationships are built through good experiences. Here's one of mine:

Dr. Tidwell - for the record - doesn't do anything all that out of extraordinary. The man pulls teeth. It's not glamorous. He does however, know his trade, and the key to successful service business relationships. Ladies and gentleman, it is excellent human-to-human CUSTOMER SERVICE. That and the fact that he pulled 3 teeth and I had no pain! None! Good customer service is the best marketing you can buy. It's social, it's a real dialogue, and it's incredibly meaningful.

The office staff was friendly, they were prepared for my visit and gave me more information on my procedure than I knew what to do with. The lighting in the waiting room was lovely. After watching an informational video for patients during my consultation, we chatted. None of this is exceptional. What makes Dr. Tidwell amazing, is that a few days after my procedure, he called me personally, to ask how I was doing and answer any questions. He could have easily had a nurse or receptionist call.

Non-Profits better at Embracing Social Media

Some of the most authentic brand interactions I've had online in the past 6 months are of the non-profit variety. Many jumped into the social media game early and are using it more effectively than the for-profit sector. Inherently because of their funding structure these organizations, often operating on shoe string budgets, have learned to get creative. Many have an arsenal of of nontraditional marketing strategies used to survive when down at the heels. That flexibility has served them well as they surf this new wave of marketing technologies. Non-profits have been rock stars at social media for a few reasons.

1. First, they are more authentic. Less selling, less editing, the conversation is real and it feels that way. Most businesses are caught up with controlling the conversation so that it accurately reflects your company culture, values, brand. Edited conversations are uncomfortable, and not only don't work but provide negative experiences for your users. Non-profits have been smart enough to have humans engaging in conversation, answering questions, and making friends. This person actually wants to hear from you which is a refreshing change from dealing with the fort of multi-billion dollar and highly classified important secrets that many businesses operate from. Businesses need to RELAX, stop worrying about being sued and get in on the conversation already.

2. Not being annoying. No one likes being marketed to. While most corporate marketers are desperate to find new ways to be interesting, non-profits understand that my life>your brand. Instead, they attempt to fit into our lives in a way that feels appropriate and doesn't offend users. Non-profits have been great at providing valuable information that their audiences want to hear. They are better at asking for permission for your attention by actually finding and staying connected to the communities that care about them. Instead of advertising what is irrelevant, these organizations are engaging their online community in a dialogue in which both parties are interested.

By offering an experience that is personal, appropriate and unedited, the result is a more authentic relationship. By earning our attention instead of capturing it, organizations can greatly strengthened their place in the minds of their communities. Social media has increased our potential, even to the most casual of online relationship, by allowing it the opportunity to develop into something more meaningful.

Certainty

A poem about certainty.

A yellow cab driver is yelling past me at me doesn't know my name.
I'm catapulting crashing into a great unknown.
Running sinking pushing towards certainty.
Connecting hearts, pieces, moving parts.
I'm purposefully putting one foot in front of the other.
Pounding the proverbial pavement.
Practicing being present eyes wide.
But dreaming of peaceful places, dancing by myself perhaps.
With moss growing on rocks as old as earth.
there are rocks everywhere.
I'm listening to the wind blow, flow like heart beats.
Humming a sometimes melancholy tune that is familiar and uncertain.
And I am choosing optimism.
To be a brazen and beautiful audacious girl.
Even if optimism is only an insight.


CertaintyCer"tain*ty\, n.; pl. Certainties. [OF. certainet['e].]
1. The quality, state, or condition, of being certain.
The certainty of punishment is the truest security against crimes. --Fisher Ames.
2. A fact or truth unquestionable established.
Certainties are uninteresting and sating. --Landor.
3. (Law) Clearness; freedom from ambiguity; lucidity.

Red Tettemer wants you to take a Stay-cation

The self proclaimed cowboys at Red Tettemer have mucho love for Pennsylvania. They worked on two tourism campaigns recently, one for The Greater Philadelphia Tourism and Marketing Corporation and another for great state of Pennsylvania itself.

My thoughts...(Yeah, I've got an opinion about it.)

The campaign for the beautiful state of Pa has me feeling all funny like. I'm fascinated, confused, and a little bit bored. The keystone of the "PA Stories" campaign are 4 webisodes following main character Peter Arthur. We follow he misadventures of P.A., a lovable nerdy type, in his search for a red-headed waitress, a long lost crush who once served him up a peice of shoofly pie with a side of a la la love. Promoted with $1.3M in media placements, including online at Jaunted, Epicurious, Jezebel, Gawker, The Onion, AV Club, Lotame, Invite Media, and Hulu. A 30 second commercial was aired during American Idol, some cute billboards, transit stations, a sprinkle of radio and a dash of guerrilla.

Referred to as an "a very tiny film with a heart as big as Pennsylvania," the webisodes are too long, but an entertaining stab at film making for RT (soundtrack and all). These full fledged little mini dramas, are short on picturesque Pennsylvania landscape and heavy on character development. They are more arty than informative: after watching for 6 minutes and still having no idea where in Pennsylvania poor love-struck Peter Arthur is, I lost interest. There is a small amount of info on the PA stories site, and users are directed to http://www.visitpa.com for more.

Red Tettemer also recently launched it's "With Love, Philadelphia, XOXO" campaign for tourism group GPTMC. Running from May through August 2009, the campaign was developed in direct response to the current economic climate, GPTMC will spend $2.5 million wooing the type of visitors they believe will still have enough cash to travel using outdoor billboards, transit shelters, radio, print, online, and a 30-second TV commercial. Some of my favorites are,"Dear Great Big World, Dear School’s Out for Summer, Dear Dear Powdered Wig Lovers." Read more here. The media placements are love letters, short and sweet, written personally from the city of Philadelphia, ripe with Philly 'tude and signed With Love xoxo. Very Cute. I love how this campaign focuses strictly on the brand message and not the discounts that many destinations are hocking these days.

Both pretty smart campaigns from a cavalier agency. I'm curious how these two campaigns impact the GPTMC and The PA tourism brands? Will these messages be reflected throughout their marketing efforts? Also, where is the link between the two? Wouldn't it have been better to do some collaboration on these two campaigns than to have Pennsylvania competing with itself for visitors? I'm waiting to find out.

Internet: The Future

I attended a short seminar (sales pitch) hosted by Razorfish to dip a toe into analytics and to learn about a new analytic software tool called Quantivo. This form of marketing isn't my forte, so there was a lot of knowledge to soak up. The datafeeds and histograms don't exactly light my fire, but the innovations are fascinating and are changing the way we market and communicate about our brands.

Analytics are a part of what I see as a dramatic shift in thinking. Long gone are the days when consumers buy your product because you say so. "Tide is the best laundry detergent there is!" Consumers are empowered. They want the ability to search for more, or less, depending on their mood. To exist in the online space as a multidimensional and complex characters with an array of eclectic tastes, hobbies, habits. The Internet is gaining the capability to react to consumer behaviors in an unprecedented fashion. The power shift is substantial.

Communication is moving from PUSH to PULL. From TALK to LISTEN. The focus has shifted from what business is telling us is the best, the biggest, the coldest beer there is, versus what consumers actually want to know. The epic marketing battle between the interesting vs. the interested is altered, and what these new tools are proving, is that, really, it's all about me.

No longer is the Internet a series of static islands for users to navigate with antiquated maps. The online space is more personal, more attentive to detail, and is reactive. Rob Norman *genius* of MindShare speaks in this video about the future of the Internet, and the use of what he calls social gyroscopes, contextual discoverability and semantic serendipity.

I think I can, I think I can

As per usual the life of a young gal in pursuit of her dreams is a cycle of joy and frustration that ebbs and flows. To those who say - "It's just a job," I say, we just don't have a goal of usefulness or perseverance in common. I, as a human, vow to pursue excellence in my professional/personal life. I don't believe these to be all that separate. Personal fulfilment from your career should never be too much to ask.

Young Profs out there,...if you're listening, the pursuit of personal fulfillment/gainful employment is not an easy one. It is hard, real hard. Many tears have been cried and beers been drank over the angst many of us feel in our professional lives. Where is the success we were promised as kiddies? Am I not as special as my mom told me?? You many be feeling, "Haven't I done everything right?" Well maybe you have, or maybe your career is not a straight line. It doesn't matter. Stop thinking about the barriers and look for opportunities, however small. Small wins are what get you through the day. Some advice. For me and for you.

1. Seek inspiration. Read, learn, and talk about your challenges. You are not alone!

2. Have goals outside of your professional life. Learn a new language, climb a mountain, eat more wings in 5 minutes than anyone in the tri-state area. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wing_Bowl

3. Do what your passionate about. If you can do this at work - you're lucky. If not, see if there are ways to incorporate what you love into your work. Otherwise, if you love writing, find a newsletter to contribute to. Start blogging! If you love marketing, do some work pro bono for a local non-profit or free-lance. If you're into nature, go for a walk in the park with a friend. Do what you love. Do it now.

4. Remember that anything worth doing is worth doing well, and never give up! We will be useful, we will contribute our talents and skills to this world and we will be a catalyst for change, transforming business as usual.

Of all the things in life you can't control, like how big your forehead is, family, your height (I'm still 4'11"), you can absolutely control many things. I have the choice of my profession. I can chose to pursue my professional goals and hope that "the world makes way for the man who knows where he is going (Emerson)." I have a choice as to how I spend my time, with whom, doing what, and for what purpose. I can choose my words. My thoughts. My actions. My life!! :)

Learning

Of the things I enjoy the most about social networking, one is certainly the ability it gives you to learn about cool stuff. Or sometimes stuff that isn't really all that cool. When I'm "wasting" my employer's valuable time on Facebook, I'm actually educating myself about all of life's offerings. I'm building my personal brand too, because let's face it, I have a personal brand so I might as well take part in building it. So Facebook, linkedin, twitter, they lead us not only to each other but to music, art, books and ideas that are shared, discussed and discovered at an astounding rate of about a zillion things shared every second. (This is approximate.) These are tools that can provide needed and appreciated sources of connection and inspiration for human beings. We are just human after all.

So while I am checking out pictures of my 3-month old nephew in Florida, I'm also, equally as important, checking out new ideas from the brightest minds in business. Being inspired, growing, and nurturing the bravery within that keeps us all both empowered and useful.

Today's discovery....http://www.tompeters.com/

Planning for the park

Last night I participated in a sort of strategic planning session for the merger of the city department of recreation and Fairmount Park. Lots of good input from the folks present, who were incredibly engaged volunteers from park groups around the city. This new entity will be serving a complex and diverse mix of constituents as demonstrated in the variety of interests and ideas in the discussions. Suggestions were given for mission/vision/goals as well as improving the overall enjoyment of the park and recreations facilities. Here are my thoughts on the proposed mission, vision, goals statement....

Mission: The combined Department is the steward of Philadelphia's Park Lands and Recreation infrastructure and advocates for children, youth, families, and their communities.

First of all don't call your organization "the combined department," give it a real name, it deserves one. Also, a mission statement should state what you exist to do and why. And um, what are you advocating for?? For children? For what - recess and naptime? Be more specific. Take a hint from your vision and be specific.

Vision: Through policy, programs and practices connect the parks and recreation department to environmental, social, cultural and economic health of the city and region.

Vision should be your 30,000 foot Big Hairy Audacious Goal of what you hope to accomplish in the world. Something like...

Using Fairmount Park and the Rec Dep't as a framework for uplifting communities and enhancing the quality of life for the city and region.

Goals:

• Attract visitors and residents, support a positive business climate, and improve the quality of life for all citizens.
• Support the development of sustainable communities and help maintain stable neighborhoods.
• Help keep kids safe, active and healthy, connecting them to their communities and to parks, recreation and the natural world.

These are again way too vague and need to be more specific in telling the public how you are going to accomplish the mission of using the park/rec facilities to contribute to the quality of life for residents. Goals should state; we will__________in order to____________. Direct, measurable, meaningful.

• We abide by the highest standards for the park's environmental and natural resources, in order to protect and ensure it be available for future generations.


• We use policy, programs, and activities and use the park as a framework in order to promote healthy lifestyles in children and adults


• We exist to serve the citizens, volunteers, and communities that enjoy the park/rec facilities, acting as their representatives, and embrace the needs and voice of the park/rec user, in order to ensure the park continues to serve their interests and needs.

Some other suggestions:

Having recycling and wireless in the park.
More visibility and communication from the new combined parks/rec department
Have a blog! Embrace the voice of your residents and the people who are most connected to the park/rec facilities.

Listening

Someone mentioned recently that we have two ears and one mouth for a reason. Well I am learning to stop talking so much and to do more listening. Putting more arrows going out and less coming in. Less attachment, less self. Thank you buddhism!

The CEO of Sprint realizes no one cares and takes a break from his boring, self absorbed commercials. For a change of pace here's a bit of creativity from the usually pretty stuffy wireless company.

Must admit - my inspiration for starting a blog is two-fold. One - I was inspired and Two - I was inspired. Been reading a pretty awesome book lately, The Cluetrain Manifesto. It's about the way the internet is changing business as we know it. I was pretty moved by their blatent disregard for the power of corporate america - it is risky, rude, and completely awesomely admirable. They talk about voices, conversation, and people being themselves. The internet gives us a place to connect, discuss, debate, and converse in our real voices.

It has become pretty freaking obvious that there is no invisible wedge between our professional lives and our real ones. Here are two interesting article about conversation and innovation in 2009...

http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/apr2007/id20070409_372598_page_2.htm

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/04/0409_most_innovative_cos/index.htm

Is this working?

Today I embark on a new journey into the blogosphere. What will this blog be about, what is the purpose, and why shoud you spend time reading it, you ask?

Goals

1. This blog exists as a forum to discuss and comment on the marketing and communications initiatives we see in our community. Big, small, whateva moves you baby.

2. We can also talk about other stuff. Things like community building, politics (easy, please), anything from architecture to pets who wear raincoats, how annoying Terry Ruggles on NBC10 is, things that are inspiring, and the prettiness of the dogwood trees on Green St.
The blog is a breathing thing that can develop in accordance with items of interest and importance that are inspiring or perplexing, what day of the week it is, you get the point.