Viral Marketing

I’m fascinated by viral marketing, and my favorite commercials are the Apple ads and the new Old Spice ads. So, I personally got a kick out of this video – viral marketing blended with Old Spice. Entertaining!

Gap’s Logo PR Disaster

Gap has received alot of flak for quietly uploading a new logo to its website; so much flak that, in fact, they have since taken the new logo down and reverted to their old one.

As all of us know, the costs for rebranding with a new logo are astronomical. Can you imagine the amount of flak it took for them to make the decision to say, “oops!”?

Gap quietly uploaded the new logo about a week ago. Fans objected in force, posting comments to Twitter, FaceBook and on tech blogs. Initially, Gap insisted the new logo would stay, and would be rolled out in advertising and in stores next month.  However, Gap soon changed its tune and listened to its customers, releasing the following statement on its FaceBook page: “We’ve heard loud and clear that you don’t like the new logo. We’ve learned a lot from the feedback. We only want what’s best for the brand and our customers”. The new logo was removed from its website today.

The thought behind the new logo was that it better reflected Gap’s updated image and more modern clothing designs.

What did they do wrong? They didn’t take into account the emotional attachment their customers had to their logo. On top of that, they ‘introduced’ the new logo without fanfare or even explanation. Plus (and I know I often stand alone on this), if you have something that works, and works well, why change it? Their logo was iconic - you can’t beat that PR! Finally, a big criticism they faced was that Gap didn’t ask their customers to weigh in on the new logo before choosing it.

What did they do right? They admitted a mistake, and swifly corrected it. Doing so endeared them to their customers, and allowed their customers to feel as if their opinion mattered and as if the Gap was listening. Doing so cut short what could have been an even larger PR disaster, and provided an opportunity to turn their current crisis into a positive experience for the company and its customers.

This post is a repeat of a post I wrote for PRSA-MD’s blog.

Mad Men Genius

As someone who started her career working at advertising agencies, you can no doubt guess that I am a fan of the TV show “Mad Men”. The 1960’s ad game isn’t that much different - well, apart from the drinking and sexual harassment - from today’s. The basic roles are the same, and the frenzy to gain and keep business is the same.

I enjoy seeing the ad campaigns Draper and his crew put together. Draper seems to have a stroke of genius in practically every episode, and the October 10 episode was no different. Though his partners, staff and indusry competitors reviled him for it, I think his open letter renouncing tobacco was genius.

The letter made him and the agency in charge - or at least gave everyone else the appearance that they were which, in the ad game, is just as important. The letter is a PR gamble, spinning the truth from Sterling Cooper Draper  Price being fired by Lucky Strike to the opposite, that Sterling Cooper Draper Price had fired Lucky Strike. By saying he and the agency were unavailable, it triggers the whole ‘want what you can’t have’ mentality - an attaction for new business. 

On the flip side, in the episode, the letter’s critics say the letter was a temper tantrum on Don’s part, and that it will make all their clients worry that the agency will drop them on a whim as well.

What do you think?

Increase in PR and Advertising Jobs

There seems to be some proof that the recession is turning around - both locally and nationally.

Locally, Joanna Sullivan of the Baltimore Business Journal interviewed 10 ad agency heads and described some of them as “downright giddy.” They are hiring and pitching new business, and their clients are spending more.

Nationally, a Council of Public Relations Firms (CPRF) survey reports similar news. Interesting stats from the survey are:

• Compared to the first half 2009, 74% of firms have seen an increase in revenues so far in 2010 (Q2 survey)
• 82% of firms expect to see the demand for digital and social media services increase in 2010 (according to a Q4 2009 survey)
• According to the following percentage of Council members, Consumer (56%), Healthcare (46%), and Technology (37%) had the most new business activity during Q1 2010

It appears that the PR and advertising fields are being revived by crises and social media!