Marobella's Branding SoapBox

Where Is The Line Between Informed & Saturated?

Speaking with my wife today about the state of the economy and all that is happening with the bailout, credit crisis and the war. She sees the Wall Street Journal open on the table every morning and hears my grumbling every time there is a headline on the front page declaring the end of the financial world is upon us. Today, she told me that she would appreciate it if I stopped reading the newspaper, watching CNN or reading blogs. Some people are of the belief that the economy is a group-think phenomenon and that we can all will ourselves out of crisis and work together to make it better. To a degree they are correct. Wall Street is very much a psychological animal where a piece of news can have the sentiment of the street move in one direction or another.

If we believe what we read and hear, we are upon the next Great Depression, that we will spiral into despair and all of us will be standing in bread lines. I have to say it is hard not to freak out a little and watch your spending even on essentials, just in case something does happen. The fact remains that 94% of us are gainfully employed and are working hard to make ends meet. Yes, that number is higher than it was in the recent past - but I believe we are a resilient, intelligent society and will find a way out of this mess.

Will anyone be surprised by the upcoming holiday spending decline? Will anyone be shocked when retailers report smaller than expected gains on holiday spending?

Until the media straightens out, maybe I will get my news from happynews.com

Missed Opportunity at Indy 500: Speed Racer

Everytime Marco Andretti's Honda-powered car went by with the Indiana Jones/Blockbuster paint scheme I kept thinking that it was the wrong movie. I mean, they even made him wear a firesuit that looked like Indy's outfit replete with fake gun holsters. And, when they did driver  introductions Marco had a fedora on. I would love to know how much they paid him to do that.

But the real scoop is that Speed Racer should have had a car sponsored, not Indiana Jones. If you've seen Speed Racer, the parallels are unmistakable. In Speed Racer, they even drink milk when they win. I'd imagine that people who like auto racing and their kids would like the premise of Speed Racer - the media buy just makes sense. There are no parallels for the Indy movie on an  Indy car other than the name of the star.

I can even picture the car made to look like Speed's Mach 5 and the driver wearing a white helmet with an M on the front. There were plenty of drivers jonesing for sponsors and they probably could have gotten into the race for cheap.

When Good Endorsements Go Bad

I am a die hard Red Sox fan and a Kevin Youkilis fan, the gritty first basemen for the Red Sox. However, I was a bit taken a back when I saw the most recent stumping he is doing for a new energy drink that will last about 2-seconds at retail. It is called Slump Buster. Now, if you remember from Bull Durham, a Slump Buster is a nice lady that offers to sleep with a player that is slumping to help break his bad streak. It seems our man Youk has decided this is a good brand name and a good product to endorse in the marketplace. Big props on the charity angle for the proceeds, but I think those coffers might run a little dry, unfortunately.

Come on Youk, you can do better.

Chuck Norris For Huckabee... uh, what?

Honestly, I am not that political. I do my best to track the candidates and make an informed decision come election day - but I am far from a political expert. However, when I see Oprah get behind Obama - I can understand his strategy. Then, Clinton asks Barbara Streisand to stump for her - that seems desperate to me and definitely doesn't appeal to anyone under 45, but I can see why she needed to have a big star behind her. But, Walker Texas Ranger standing right behind Mike Huckabee at the Iowa caucuses.. What?! I don't understand that in the hell that has to do with anything? This guy is stumping on an evangelical, populous platform (hey, not bad for a not-so-political guy) and he has the #1 ass-kicker covering his back?

Big mistake.

2-Sides To Service At Nordstrom?

Nordstrom is probably my favorite store  where I purchase clothing. Usually, I would spend most of my hard earned cash at the Rail, which is Nordstrom's attempt to appeal to the younger customer. The younger customer with big dough, that is, because jeans like True Religion cost around $300. This store-within-a-store is no relief from the prices at Nordstrom that's for sure. However, one thing has become evident to me - the service levels that Nordstrom is famous for doesn't seem to trickle down to the Rail. There are usually young, hip people working in this section and they don't seem to have the same commitment to personalized service as the men and women in the other areas. Now, as I approach 40, I find myself spending more time at Nordstrom shopping the "adult" sections where the clothes are still super-cool, but most likely don't have skulls or daggers imprinted on them. The difference is the people that work in these sections know how to treat a customer.

I think it is a smart move for Nordstrom to have a generational-divide and appeal to the children of the people shopping their other areas - but do not let up on the commitment to service. Someday, those children will start to spend their money "upstairs" (like me) and it would be a shame to lose them before they get on that escalator.

What's Up With the Word Mash-Ups?

Has anyone else noticed that two direct competitors are using the same premise in their current ad campaigns? AT&T and Comcast are both using word mash-ups to make two different points in their spots. First, AT&T is trying to tell us that their network is wherever you are with words like NEW SANFRANKOTA," "CHILONDOSCOW," or "JAPARIDELPHIA."

Comcast is trying to get across another point with their "Televisaphonernetting" campaign that illustrates the various services that Comcast can bundle for you. Obviously, cable, phone and internet.

I can't imagine the horror that each agency and CMO felt when they saw the others campaign. And, it seems that both have increased their spending to try and benefit from the word mashup-a-thon. Nothing like a little brand blur action. Maybe its just art imitating life - what is the different between these companies anyway?

2 Things I Hate About IKEA

IKEA is usually mentioned in the same sentence as the phrase "one of the best brands in the world." Lord knows I have certainly spent my share of hard earned dollars inside the blue box. But, the time has come for me to question how the hell this brand is able to survive when they fall flat on their face on 2 glaring items and for good measure I will throw in a third.

First, their website. Ikea.com has to be the worst online retail shopping experience in the history of online retail shopping experiences. They have so few stores in the US, could you imagine the value they could create for their company if they had a better online experience? Not everyone enjoys the pilgrimage to the closest IKEA which is probably more than 100 miles away.

Second, their customer service 800#. For my Chicago-office of Wirestone, I have ordered a great deal of stuff from IKEA. Every time, and I mean every time, something goes wrong. My poor Office Manager spends at least 2-hours a day trying to resolve the issues. EVERY TIME!How can a world-class brand like IKEA have customer service that has to rank up there with Ed Debevics in Chicago. And for you Chicagoans, you know that ain't pretty. They are rude, clueless and anything but helpful.

And for good measure, I will throw in a 3rd - their stupid instruction manuals that make absolutely no sense. Now, if any of you masochists try and tell me that this is part of the IKEA charm, I will personally come to your house with that stupid allen wrench they give you and poke out your eye.

Now, I ask you good people of experience-land, how can a brand that falls way down on so many service-measures be as successful as they are? Are their products and store experience so good that we give them mulligans on the other stuff? If IKEA could round out their experience to include world-class customer service and a website experience that helps rather than hinders, imagine what they could do?

skittles street drug horse camel

Every now and again I take a look at the search terms that guide people to my blog. This one is a crazy selection of words. I wonder what this person was searching for?

Sounds like they were searching for a hell of a night down in Tijuana!!!!!

Crushing Product Placement

Of course I am a Sopranos junkie. And, of course I watched the finale on the edge of my microfiber couch. I'm not going to debate the substance of the finale of 86 episodes here, but I have been thinking about a very interesting brand placement in the finale. When Phillie Leotardo was killed at the gas station, the close-up of the Ford logo on the wheel that ultimately made sure he was whacked.

I wonder if Ford executives sold out to the millions and millions of people destined to watch the episodic, yet disappointing final episode of the Sopranos. If so, I would be shocked to learn that they would approve of their brand being juxtaposed with such an awful act of humanity.

I guess after all these years and all the time waited with baited breath to see how it would end, I still cant't get branding and brand placement off my mind. Or, would that be Phillie's mind? Sorry, couldn't resist.

Harvard-Trained

I was watching MSNBC the other night and on came a short-form infomercial for a "wonder-cream" that claimed that it could remove years of wrinkles almost immediately. It claimed that it was better and safer than Botox. Now, of course, this wouldn't be the first time that an informercial made some remarkable claims about what it could do for the purchaser. However, one thing that caught my eye was one of the doctors being interviewed for her testimonial on the performance of the product had under her name a caption that read "Harvard-trained". Does this mean she went to Harvard? Does it mean she worked out with a trainer in the Harvard Athletic facilities? Does it mean she graduated from Med School there? I couldn't stop thinking about this twisted truth and how the advertiser was able to mislead people by not lying, but using the brand of Harvard to their advantage when all she probably did was take one or two classes at the Harvard Extension (night) School.

Maybe I could put on my resume, "Harvard-Influenced". Think that would sell some people on Brand Marobella? I doubt it.