Crucial Points

Update on the future of retailing: Payment Vehicles

2011-08-11T10:21:00.001-07:00

In my March 7 post I projected how the smartphones might be used by retailers and customers. The article below from USA Today provides more detail on how we can expect to pay using our phones.

When will we be paying for stuff with our smartphones?
By Garrett Hubbard, USA TODAY
Aug 11 2011
    You're in the checkout line ready to pay for the items in your shopping cart.
    Instead of fumbling with cash or pulling out a credit card, you whip out a smartphone. Inside the handset are chips that make nice with the store's register, and a digital wallet app holds virtual replicas of your plastic debit, credit and loyalty cards. You tap the screen to choose which one you want to use to pay for your purchases, then confirm the amount. An instant later, the transaction is complete.
    If the digital future pans out the way that leading banks, credit card issuers, wireless carriers and tech companies hope, scenarios like this could become common.
    Folks rarely leave home without their keys, wallets and cellphones. The thinking behind the next advancement in mobile payments — and it's likely to take years before this vision goes mainstream — is that all three can be merged into one.
    "The promise of the mobile wallet is you'll be able to manage your entire financial life from a single device," says Andy Schmidt, research director for commercial banking and payments at TowerGroup.
    Google took a major step toward making this a reality in May with the unveiling of the Google Wallet test pilot. Its financial, retail and technology partners include Citi, MasterCard, First Data, Sprint, Bloomingdale's, Macy's, RadioShack, Subway, Toys R Us, VeriFone and Walgreens.
    Meanwhile, the rival ISIS mobile commerce network — formed in November among major wireless carriers AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless— has struck agreements with American Express, MasterCard, Visa and Discover. Visa's own e-wallet is scheduled to be available by year's end.
Mobile payments can take many forms, and the field is wide open. Several well-known companies, as well as a number of start-ups you've never heard of, are jockeying to be the lead dog in this rush to make paying via cellphone practical.
    Last spring, American Express launched the Serve digital payments platform that allows person-to-person payments over mobile phones, online or at merchants that typically accept regular AmEx cards. Serve pits AmEx against the likes of PayPal. Recently announced partners include Sprint and Verizon Wireless.
    In May, Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo formed ClearXchange, a joint venture that lets bank customers make person-to-person payments using an e-mail address or mobile phone number.
    "A lot of experimentation is happening," says Dan Schulman, president of enterprise growth at American Express. "There's no silver bullet, no definite winner out there at this moment."
    Omar Green, Intuit's director of strategic mobile initiatives, says that during the next 18 months, "There's going to be a mad rush and a land grab. There's a lot of potential money on the table." Fee structures vary.
Intuit is helping merchants accept payments via phones and tablets through its GoPayment reader that snaps onto certain Android, BlackBerry and Apple iOS devices. It turns compatible phones and tablets into credit card readers, making the devices potentially useful to business people who typically shun plastic, including contractors, plumbers and even the Girl Scouts.
San Francisco start-up Square, formed and led by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, took a similar approach.
    Users can plug Square's free pocket-size credit card reader into the audio jack on an Android or Apple device. Doing so lets customers swipe credit or debit cards on those devices.
    On the merchant side, Square lets shopkeepers accept payments via an iPad, bypassing the need for traditional point-of-sale cash registers. Customers can sign for a purchase right on the touch-screen of their iPad. Square charges merchants 2.75% per transaction.
    Along the way, Square can capture meaningful data for businesses. "We can tell the (café owner) that they sold this number of cappuccinos, and this percentage of people bought biscotti, and this is what happens on a rainy day and this is your busiest hour on a Tuesday," Dorsey says.
Change is coming
    There's some evidence that more and more folks will use phones to pay for everyday items.
    Coffee lovers increasingly are getting their daily fix using the Starbucks payment app, available on Android devices, BlackBerrys and iPhones. Customers hold the phone in front of a scanner that reads an on-screen bar code.
    "The customer can check his balance (on a prepaid Starbucks card), reload the card, get an update on where they are from a loyalty status," says Adam Brotman, vice president and general manager for digital ventures at Starbucks.
    Ryan Detzel of Cambridge, Mass., is a fan of the app. He recently tweeted, "Someone needs to master mobile payments fast! The #starbucks app works so well I wish I could pay for everything that way!"
PayPal recently demonstrated a wireless technology — known as Near Field Communication (NFC) — that lets people transfer money from their PayPal-funded accounts by tapping two Nexus S Android smartphones together. PayPal says the feature will hit the market this summer. The Near Field Communication technology is at the core of several mobile payment initiatives, including Google's.
    "We're acutely aware that simply moving (from) a physical wallet to … an electronic one is not enough," says Sam Shrauger, PayPal's vice president of global product strategy.
    Indeed, for many mobile payment backers the Holy Grail is to link digital wallets to other apps on a phone. That's why Google is combining its Wallet with Google Offers, which generates discount deals. And it's why Visa, for example, can deliver security-minded transaction text alerts every time a customer's account is used overseas or a payment amount exceeds $100.
    If you use your Visa account to make a purchase at a store that happens to be near a Gap outlet, you may receive a Gap mobile coupon right then.
Jeff Larson, vice president of global marketing at Subway, sees the "opportunity to integrate not just payments but social media, search, location, GPS (and) mobile offers."
    Even so, persuading the masses to embrace mobile payments isn't easy.
According to the Gartner research firm, worldwide mobile payment users will surpass 141.1 million in 2011, up from 102.1 million in 2010. Mobile-payment volume is forecast to total $86.1 billion, up from $48.9 billion last year. But Gartner says the market is growing more slowly than mobile-pay proponents expected. Also, the researcher says, in developed markets, mass-market adoption for such payments is at least four years away.
    Intuit's Green says, "What I'm hearing isn't so much, 'Please give me a way to tap and go.' What I'm hearing is, 'Please help me better manage my money when I'm actually out there spending it.'"
    He envisions a smart wallet that eventually might steer customers to use one digital account to pay for a given item because reward points or a discount is available, while advising against using another because the account is nearing its credit limit.
What's standing in the way
    Among the obstacles that need to be worked out:
    •If it ain't broke, why fix it? Consumers have been pulling cash or plastic cards out of physical wallets for generations. Green says, "There isn't anything harder or more expensive than changing people's behavior."
What's more, shoppers have never had to worry about dying phone batteries preventing them from being able to make a payment.
    •Security and privacy. Consumers worry about losing their phones, but the fact is people may be in better shape losing their smartphone than if their actual wallet is lost or stolen. Phones (and apps) can be password-protected. Security elements are built into the NFC chips. It's easy to remotely shut down a digital wallet if necessary. And people may notice a missing phone before they notice a missing wallet.
    Still, Consumers Union senior attorney Michelle Jun cautions, "If wireless carriers expect consumers to feel comfortable using mobile-payment services, they need to provide at least the same level of protections that come with credit cards." Jun says mobile charges linked to credit or debit cards are guaranteed the same federal protections but that mobile charges linked to other forms of payment lack such legal protections.
Customers also must have a clear understanding of their privacy rights.
"Right now we're not actually taking any data and storing it or doing anything with it beyond allowing a transaction," says Google mobile-payments executive Osama Bedier. "We have a policy around how to do that, and privacy is very important to us. The consumer has to be very aware of what data they may be making available, and they've got to give their consent in every case."
    Google says the transaction data remain between you and your bank, just as it does when you use a traditional credit card.
    •Infrastructure. Merchants must be persuaded to upgrade checkout terminals. Relatively few can handle Near Field Communication-type contactless payments right now.
    "Merchant acceptance is somewhat spotty at best," says Peter Ho, product manager for Wells Fargo card services and consumer lending. It's going to take time and money."
    Alberto Jimenez, who leads IBM's mobile-banking and payments initiatives globally, says there are several challenges: "The fact that phones are not ready, the point that merchants are not ready and that the ecosystem is not coordinated."
    Very few handsets are equipped with Near Field Communication chips. In the USA, Google is launching its Wallet soon with just a single device that has the chips: the Nexus S from Sprint. The iconic iPhone doesn't have the capability. But more NFC-capable phones are in the pipeline.
    There are workarounds in the meantime. You can put antennas that make such transactions possible on memory cards that fit into slots on several phones. You also might put stickers with the technology embedded on them on a phone.
    Silicon Valley start-up Naratte uses ultrasound frequencies to provide what it claims are NFC-type benefits. The technology, called Zoosh, uses the speaker and microphone built into mobile phones.
    •Competition. It's not known if shoppers will carry multiple payment or wallet apps or just multiple cards within a digital wallet. As the market sorts itself out, everyone is going to want their piece, from the financial institutions to phone companies.
But MasterCard mobile head Mung-Ki Woo believes the growth of mobile means the pie will only get bigger: "This isn't a zero sum game," he says.
Google's Bedier is equally sanguine. "Part of why we feel there's an opportunity in this space for Google to make a difference is there are too many solutions that are all fragmented and don't work well together. The whole essence of payment has been some level of standardization. … Let's create the right opportunity using our weight to create the right set of standards."
    And how quickly does Bedier think this all gets adopted?
    "It's early. Obviously, I'm optimistic. We're in this game for a reason. The timing is right, the opportunity is right and the approach is right."

Respected Company, Financial Difficulty, No Crisis Communication Plan

2011-04-30T14:28:00.002-07:00

A large real-estate firm is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Bankruptcy of real-estate firms is not that unusual given the market these days, and how it was announced to employees and contractors wasn’t unusual either. As is the case with many privately held companies undergoing bankruptcy, the employees and customers find out when the doors are locked, their paychecks bounce or their purchases are not delivered. [The news article details some of the communications surrounding the announcement: http://bit.ly/iujdX8]

Here are some of the actions that the company leaders could have done to lessen the short- and long-term damage to the company’s brand.

A Recommended Plan of Action

The leaders knew that the company was in difficulty, so they should have worked out a detailed plan to communication to all stakeholders. The plan would have:

Identified all the stakeholders – landlords, contractors, utility suppliers, employees (most important constituency in my point of view) and customers.
Crafted an outline of the various scenarios and outcomes that the company faced and the possibilities of each scenario occurring.
Drafted messages to each stakeholders group and a schedule for each message based on the outline above. In a fast moving situation such as this, it would have made pro-active communications easier and more effective.

The company did communicate with some of its stakeholders, but too late and apparently not the entire story. The company’s leader should have:

Called a meeting to make employees aware that it was in financial difficulty and that some office locations would be closed. Employees being locked out of their building should have not been the initial message that things were not going well.
The initial message to employees should have been totally truthful: Here is the situation, how we’re trying to resolve it, and the alternatives based on negotiations. The leader(s) knew what the alternatives were and how they were proceeding.

And, finally, when there was no alternative to Chapter 11, all the employees should have been notified in advance, even if it was by an hour or two.

New Church, Same Dogma

2011-04-07T10:59:00.002-07:00

At the New Church of Social Media, the congregants found that the path to search engine optimization (SEO) and high return on investment (H-ROI) were the very same ones that the Church of Old Media Communication preached.

1. You shall not waste real estate Genuflecting to search algorithms
2. You shall Enrapture the audience you have
3. You shall Write Better Headlines
4. You shall Be Visual
5. You shall Create Meaningful Content
6. You shall not Exalt yourself
7. You shall not make Promises you can’t keep
8. You’d better offer Solutions
9. You shall include Calls to Action
10. You shall offer Paths to further Enlightenment

Types of Obsolescence Used by Marketers

2011-04-05T19:18:00.000-07:00

There are five types of obsolescence found in marketing literature.

They are:

1. Technical Obsolescence – New technology superseding the old and hence replacing it completely

2. Functional Obsolescence – When products do not perform in the manner that they did when they were created. This may be due to natural wear, or due to some intervening act.

3. Planned Obsolescence – Marketers plan obsolescence of certain products with the intention of generating sales volumes out of newer products.

4. Style Obsolescence – When a product is no longer desirable because it has gone out of the popular fashion, its style is obsolete.

5. Postponement Obsolescence – This refers to a situation where technological improvements are not done to a product even though they could be.

I have a sixth one:

6. On-the-Shelf Obsolescence – When nobody bought the product.

McCann Keeps Army Account: How They Did It

2011-04-05T13:39:00.002-07:00

Using Direct Marketing and Personalized Hypersites as the First Touch Points in Initiating a Social Relationship Commerce Strategy

2011-03-22T19:51:00.001-07:00

Relationship Marketing is about driving customer response, building brand engagement and increase customer loyalty. The customer relationship management strategy emphasizes direct and personalized interactions with customers.

A critical first step is Direct Marketing (DM). DM is a one-to-one marketing program – expressed as 1:1 Marketing – is a way to establish relationships using your contact database.

How a “DM + PURL = SRC Strategy” Campaign Works

Develop a database from your CRM.
Create your hypersite – a unique website name such as prioritymail.com that can be used as a customized and personalized experience for each person who is invited to the site.
Create the direct mail materials. I recommend that they be e-mail-friendly unless your contact database is mailing address only.
The prospect receives a personalized direct mail invitation with a Personalized URL (PURL). Sample: prioritymail.com/wendy1.
When she receives the invitation, she will be asked to log onto her PURL that is included in and keyed to the offering.
She completes the registration/survey and receives a custom response based on specific responses to the survey.
That lead is then forwarded to a designated follow-up person via e-mail.
And a "thank you" e-mail is automatically sent to the prospect with additional information. The e-mail should include invitations to follow your company, product or service via Facebook, Twitter or other social media.

The personalization of interactions fosters more intense customer loyalty and higher returns on your marketing investment. You can experience even greater returns and continued loyalty when 1:1 marketing campaign transitions into a social relationship commerce strategy when tied to Facebook, Twitter or other social media.

Group Messaging is Ideal for B2B Customer Service Teams

2011-03-16T18:29:00.000-07:00

Group Messaging (GM) is an ideal and inexpensive way for B2B customer service and technical support teams to keep in constant touch with customers. Messaging software has been developed by a handful (and growing numbers) of start-ups in the past year to connect with friends in social networks. Essentially, GM offers opportunities to simultaneously communicate with everyone in your network, instantly and privately, using any Android, iOS and Blackberry devices.
   GM provides businesses the opportunity to easily create individual networks of customers. Here’s an example of how it might work.
   KoolerAir Technologies sells hyper-cooling blades to commercial HVAC companies. KoolerAir creates a GM network of all companies in Phoenix who bought H-C blades. The technical service team at Kooler creates a group of service companies that invested in H-C blades. Kooler and its customers can share information through the network at a job site using cell phones or tablets. No special software or other technology is required. Images, diagrams, short messages or location information can be easily shared. The one drawback is that the number of characters is limited, so an operating manual will not be able to be transmitted. But creative types can send a hyperlink to more information that can be accessed by phone or table.
   Look for this segment to grow in 2011-12.

Benefits of Social Media for B2B Marketing

2011-03-15T19:49:00.004-07:00

B2B relationships and transactions are typically high-touch and are established through relationship building. Social media offers opportunities to connect with and interact with prospects and customers using a variety of touch points.
Social media is a vibrant, two-way, nearly real-time conversation that can create highly personal relationships.
B2B buyers rely heavily on third-party feedback making purchase decisions. Buyers trust the opinions of colleagues using the products – “first-order endorsements” payoff.
Thought leadership opportunities. Thought leadership is very useful in building credibility and shaping issues. It helps strengthen your market positioning, enhance your perceived value to clients, build trust and loyalty, and generate more business overall.
B2B have long- and short-term sales cycles. B2B products and services tend to be complex and their purchasing decisions have a direct relationship to their bottom lines. Sales cycles are long and buyers will spend a lot of time on upfront research, so influence the process.
Buyers are conducting online research after the sale. And if pleased, they will advocate – becoming "first-order endorsers" – and generate conversations for others to evaluate and comment on.

Sources and Links:
- Bonini, Sheila, Court, David and Marchi, Alberto (2009, June) From Strategy Practice. Rebuilding corporate reputations: A perfect storm has hit the standing of big business. Companies must step up their reputation-management efforts in response.

- Edelman, David C. (2010, December) Harvard Business Review. Branding in the Digital Age: You’re Spending Your Money in All the Wrong Places. http://hbr.org/2010/12/branding-in-the-digital-age/ar/1

- Nair, Asutosh and Sidhu, Jaspreet (2010, January 22). Social Media for B2B Marketing. www.b2bento.com

- Manasco, Britton. (2009, December 21). Want to Build Trust? Want to be a Market Leader? Be a Thought Leader. http://bit.ly/68wFCG
- Schultz, Mike and Doerr, John. Professional Services Marketing. 1999. Wiley.

Leadership: The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same

2011-03-13T11:48:00.000-07:00

Google decided that they need to build a better boss. So its stats geeks crunched all the data from performance reviews and came up with the so-called "Eight Habits of Highly Effective Google Managers." And guess what? Google validated 100 years of management science! (New York Times, March 13, 2011: http://nyti.ms/hGaWwr)
Max Weber, Alfred Adler, Henri Fayol, Frederick Herzberg, Frederick Taylor, et al, are vindicated!
What is really disconcerting, though, is that a majority of managers have no clue about how to lead. Take a minute and compare management styles that you encounter within your organization to the eight behaviors that Google identified. How do they compare?

5 R’s of Social Media ROI

2011-03-08T18:01:00.000-07:00

Reach: Communicating with the target audience
Relevance: Information that satisfies the needs of the audience
Resonance: Strikes the right chord with audience and moves them to act
Reward: The customer purchases Return: The customers returns topurchase again and/or becomes a first-order endorser
Return: The customers returns to purchase again and/or becomes a first-order endorser

The 5 R's also apply to all marketing communications activities

Tracking and Engaging Influencers on Social Media

2011-03-06T13:56:00.000-07:00

Influencers in your brand category are not just useful and handy to have in your back pocket, but essential to a social media marketing and ROI strategy.

Before we move forward, let’s define who is an influencer. Influencers are:

1. Those who actually purchase and use your products and services (primary audience and potential first-order endorsers)

2. Those who will make the final selection or purchasing decision or who must otherwise be reached (primary audience and potential first-order endorsers: purchasing agents, consultants, etc.)

3. Those who have direct influence with the primary audience (secondary audiences regulators, original equipment manufacturers, etc.)

4. Those who indirectly influence the primary audience and who can provide information to primary or secondary audiences (tertiary audiences: someone who others respect: friends or neighbors)

There is a fifth group with whom communicators should be concerned: Those who have no direct connection to your business, products or services, but aggregate, mediate and transfer information from across the spectrum.

Identifying these the first four influencer groups takes place during the development of an organization’s marketing strategy and marketing communications plans. Remember, the tasks of identifying influencers, sales potential, and measurement of perception and engagement must be approached holistically.

Ways to Identify and Monitor Influencers

Our web universe is expanding, contracting and converging at a fast pace making it nearly impossible for companies to monitor the billions of conversations taking place concurrently. But there are some things that you can do that won’t break your marketing bank and some emerging companies that can do the sophisticated data monitoring and crunching to provide the information that best suits your needs.

Since you have already identified the influencers:

Search for key words in you brand category; reviews and forums provide plenty of information and other threads to follow.
Search for specific reviews of your competitors’ products.
Link to Facebook, Twitter feeds, Newsvine, Quora, del.icio.ous, etc., to follow “conversations.” Are they blogging regularly? Getting a lot of comments? Have a lot of subscribers and/or followers?

Beyond these basic and easy-to-do activities, it gets increasingly complicated to identify, validate and measure influence easily. There are a number of companies that specialize in measurement that will do the heavy lifting for you.

Traackr: Locates, qualifies and tracks online influencers within any market, conversation or topic and ranks their influence.

Attensity: Provides companies ability to listen, analyze, relate and act on multi-channel customer conversations.

Terametric: Continuously gathers, filters and mines intelligence from social media, traditional media and proprietary sources to get a complete picture of an organization’s online and offline activity.

PostRank Connect: Helps organizations identify and measure relevant influencers.

Another Take on Future of Retail

2011-03-05T14:21:00.001-07:00

Whether on phone or tablet, shopping is changing for the better. See: http://bit.ly/gQxEFe

Fashion Funnies

2011-02-27T14:41:00.000-07:00

High-Tech Coupon Clipping at Your SuprMart

2011-02-24T10:21:00.001-07:00

I am not a coupon clipper or a user. Yes, I know how much I could be saving at the local SuprMart or the SuprSalad on Tuesdays at 5:30. I confess I did attempt the coupon thing at Macy’s during the holidays, but that didn’t turn out well. It seemed like everyone else had coupons, and even with a scanner, it took forever. And most of the coupons were not useable for any number of reasons, mine included. Never again!

Let’s fast forward to 2013. I’m doing my usual shopping at the SuprMart and the shoppers are aiming their cell phones at the merchandise. What’s up with this?

It’s high-tech coupon clipping without the scissors or the coupon.

How it works.

I have a SuprMart Club app that includes my ID, buying preferences and other information valuable to the retailer and is linked to the checkout and all the products on the shelves.

I happen to like DelMonte fruit cocktail, buying several cans each week. I would open my SuprMart Club app on my phone and aim the camera toward the display. Behold, a wealth of information appears! Not only do I get the SuprMart Club savings, DelMonte will give me a 25 cents savings on each can if I buy three. And, if I buy the DelMonte 29oz Mandarin & Tropical Salad at the same time, it’s half price. Sounds good, so I click “agree” and it registers on my phone.

And when I check out, the register scans the image on my phone and instant checkout for those items.

Now, I can get into this high-tech coupon clipping.

This no joke! As I finished up this post, this message arrived via e-mail:

Download new report: Mobile Shopper Insights for 2011

The battleground for consumers' hearts and minds is rapidly extending to the small screen.

Recent research finds that shoppers highly satisfied with a mobile experience are 30% more likely to buy from that retailer online and 30% more likely to buy from them offline.*

Our just-released report, Adobe Scene7 Mobile Commerce Survey: Mobile Shopper Insights for 2011, can help you chart a course for building relevant and optimal mobile experiences, backed by actionable insights on mobile shopping behavior and preferences, including:

Who are mobile shoppers?
How much time are consumers spending on mobile shopping?
Do they prefer using browsers or apps for a range of mobile shopping activities?
What features and tools do mobile shoppers most value?

Know your mobile shoppers and get your free report today! *ForeSee Results

Which Is More Effective – Public Relations or Advertising?

2011-02-17T20:10:00.003-07:00

There are continuing debates about whether public relations offers superior ROI than advertising and vice-versa. However, it is not a Zero-Sum Game. Both PR and advertising will, when used appropriately and effectively, contribute to your marketing success.

In my view, a PR program is a higher-order function than an advertising program.

Public Relations is a strategic discipline that guides your engagement with all of your company’s internal and external stakeholders. It is long-term, multi-channel, two-way engagement program that includes all functions within your organization and your customers. Simply stated, the goal of PR is to engage with your stakeholders in order to create and enhance the opportunities to sell.

Advertising is a direct, unfiltered, one-way tactic to reach your customers. It is a very effective way to help introduce new products and services to your customers and to re-enforce your brand promise. A specific solution to the customer’s needs and an emphatic call-to-action must be included for maximum effectiveness. Advertising is not a stand-alone activity, it is a tactic within your overall integrated communications strategy.

Advertising Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths:
   Targeted
   Unfiltered
   Includes specific call-to-action
   Easily measured

Weaknesses:

   One-way communication
   May be viewed as less credible than first- and
   third-party endorsements via PR
   Message can be lost in ad clutter
   Cost per response may be high
   Must be repeated several times for effectiveness

Creating Effective Advertising

1. Understand your customer

2. Identify benefit for the customer

3. State benefit in headline

4. Include a call to action – what do you want the reader to do now

5. Include a caption

Constant Situational Awareness Is Vital to Your Communications Program

2011-02-10T21:07:00.001-07:00

Research is the most important activity that communicators engage in because it affects all other activities. The process defines the problems, identifies the audiences, directs communications strategies and tactics, describes our next steps.
Research and analysis provides practitioners with the evidence with which to advocate for and support a particular communications strategy.
Constant situational awareness provides early warning mechanisms that alert you to potential threats to your brand.

Monitor media, especially social media, for rumor control and to measure attitudes.
Monitor you industry and suppliers constantly: Their crisis could ensnare you!
Keep track of your competition. Remember - they are watching you!

The New Marketing Mix -- It's All About the Customer

2011-02-01T09:39:00.001-07:00

The Marketing Mix (4-P’s) is so 20th Century. In the 21st, it’s all about the Big C -– as in Customer.
    The new marketing mix = 4-C's*:
   1. Customer: What the customer wants and needs
     2. Cost: What is the customers cost to satisfy needs
     3. Convenience: Ease of total buying experience
     4. Communication: Ongoing conversation and exchanges during and after the purchase
      The conversation following the sale is now pivotal to ensuring a repeat sale and converting your customer into an advocate. We've heard about the value of third-party endorsers, today the satisfied customer becomes what I call the “first-order endorser" (an unsatisfied customer can become your “first-order thorn”). First-order endorsers proactively using the Internet channels and social and other emerging media to comment on their experiences -- and they are not shy about it. Thus it is extremely important to pay keen attention to the entire buying experience and continuing customer engagement.

*Koichi Shimizu proposed a four Cs classification in 1973, but his model was commodity-centric, not customer-centric.

Symmetry versus Asymmetry in Logo Design?

2010-12-30T10:41:00.000-07:00

The December edition of Harvard Business Review referenced research from the Rotterdam School of Management that: "Rationally or not, people associate symmetrical logos with more ethical, socially responsible behavior."
Two of the symmetrical logos pictured were WalMart and ATT, not your best examples of ethical, socially responsible companies.

The consumer decision journey can be off, way off, the beaten path.

2010-12-29T12:11:00.001-07:00

When it was time to consider buying a new television, I used the usual methods to consider and evaluate brands -- visited manufacturers website, specialty enthusiast magazines, etc. Even TV commercials. However, my wife took a totally different approach. She paid attention to the actual TV pictures in restaurants, sports bars, hotel lobbies. Over time, she came up with two recommendations, and we purchased those two. We would have only purchased one brand, but due to size restrictions, we had to go with two different manufacturers.
When your team is considering how to market a particular brand, product or service, think way off the beaten path -- it may lead to gold.

Evaluate Your Evaluation Metrics and Tactics

2010-12-24T14:47:00.003-07:00

       We all understand the need to show senior management and/or our clients that they are indeed getting the desired results for their investment. I advocated on my blog that we pass plans under a SMART lens to enhance our opportunities for success. Let’s now concentrate on measurement / evaluation.
       Like many other professionals, I have struggled at times to develop meaningful and accurate metrics to gauge success. Now, once my initial metric draft is completed, I rely on the sparky phrase “My measurements must RAVE!” No, not the dance party!

RAVE =
Relevancy to comm’s goal: Does it measure to appropriate outcome?
Adequacy for moving the needle and is it detectable using the described metric(s)?
Validity over time. And are projected outcomes believable?
Ease of measurement. If the measurement tools are too difficult or expensive to implement, recalibrate the whether the overall goal is appropriate or determine whether there are other ways to gather and analyze information.

       RAVE adds another tool to your planning toolkit and will help you answer questions that you client will ultimately ask.

If You're Selling to an Aerospace Business You should Know Better

2010-12-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

I found this ad in the December 2010 issue of National Defense magazine. If your company is attempting to sell to an aerospace defense contractor, you'd better know your stuff.
This ad shows a F-14 tomcat which was retired from service in 2006.

Be SMART With Your Communications Planning

2010-12-17T10:43:00.002-07:00

We as communicators must be SMART with our public relations / communications plans.
SMART is: Specific + Measurable + Achievable + Relevant + Timely

SMART is a strategic mindset that focuses on the goal and the metrics that tell us whether the goal has been achieved. Obviously this is not rocket science, but many times the tactics and message delivery mechanisms distract attention from the raison d'être for a communication program.

I recommend that you pass your plan, strategy and tactics under the SMART lens to increase your opportunities for success.

How Does She Get Into and Out of This Body Suit?

2010-12-12T13:17:00.002-07:00

There must be some strategically placed zippers somewhere. Using the rest room could be a major acrobatic undertaking.
   Won't those furry boots slow her down on the slopes? Yea, I know... she removes them for flight.
   Are the googles a bit large for her?
   You can tell I'm an expert on snow skiing.

Metanarrative in Public Relations

2010-12-09T17:41:00.001-07:00

Modernism versus Postmodernism philosophical intrigues aside and apologies to Lyotard, metanarratives can be used by businesses to describe overarching value offerings and to provide a framework upon which a coherent brand promise can be developed and communicated. It is important that communications professionals be cognizant of the importance of the company’s metanarrative when developing plans.

Irving and Klenke stated: “Metanarrative[s] creates an interpretive framework in which the part [product value propositions] may be understood in reference to the whole [brand promise].” *

The Metanarrative Index^© can be utilized to provide insights about how the individual value propositions of products / services reflect and re-enforce the brand promise metanarrative. It is an interpretive framework in which the value message may be understood and developed in reference to the overarching brand promise (Irving and Klenke). If a value message doesn’t reflect any aspect of the brand metanarrative, it should be re-evaluated.

Example of a Brand Promise

3PRIMESoftWare (fictional company) is a company that provides software to small online retailers to make their connections with customers more user-friendly and secure, and easy for the business to manage at the same time.

Brand Promise: At 3PRIMESoftWare, our primary focus is to enhance customer value by making online shopping software and related services that are more reliable, more cost-effective, interactive with other systems, scalable and enhanced transactional security for small businesses. Our employees are proud of 3PRIMES’ products and services, and are continuously focused on improving the customers’ online sales operations and profitability.

3PRIMESoftWare’s products and services reflect its commitment to leading-edge software development for small online business applications and to the latest security protocols.

3PRIMESoftWare’s products and services value propositions reflect not only value for their customers but also reflect and re-enforce its brand promise – reliability, interactivity, scalability, cost effectiveness and security.

How a Metanarrative Index Works

The illustration of the Index includes four value propositions for customer messaging. Each horizontal bar illustrates the strength of the products’ particular value to the metanarrative. Product A, for example, skews toward security, followed, in order, by interactivity, lowers operating costs and ease of use.

When used as an integral component of the communication plan, metanarratives and the Metanarrative Index will help integrate all messaging to the customer need and to establishing or re-enforcing the brand promise.

*Irving, J. A., and Klenke, K. (2004). Telos, chronos, and hermēneia: The role of metanarrative in leadership effectiveness through the production of meaning. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 3(3). Article 3. Retrieved December 3, 2010 from http://www.ualberta.ca/~iiqm/backissues/3_3/html/irvingklenke.html.

What Being Dead -- "Bio-Finality" -- Means

2010-11-22T18:30:00.001-07:00

During the last decade or so I have been considering the relationship between religion and science. My master’s thesis examined the situation in detail and so I read articles and books by skeptics, those who do not believe that God exists and/or are antithetical towards religion – all religion(s). While I believe in God and that humans have souls and an afterlife, I do not believe that there is a heaven where we end up dining with friends and family. I am now trying to understand death, its “bio-finality,” and what a soul really could be. Someone said being dead is like before conception, therefore no “me,” thus no consciousness of time or history. Or anything else!
       I came across these very interesting passages about death recently.
       Joe and Jack Reacher’s conversation following the death of their mother. “Life,” Joe said. “What a completely weird thing it is. A person lives sixty years, does all kinds of things, knows all kinds of things, feels all kind of things, and then it’s over. Like it never happened at all.”
      “We’ll always remember her.”
     “No, we’ll remember parts of her. The parts she chose to share. The tip of the iceberg. The rest, only she knew about. Therefore the rest already doesn’t exist. As of now.” From “The Enemy" by Lee Child, Dell edition, p. 349.
       Rabbi Harold Kushner: “But I have lost too many people to death, and miss them too much, to be able to bring myself to say that death is in anyway good or harmless. Death is terrible, disruptive [especially to the dead person] and final.” From “How Good Do You Have to Be?” – p.154.
       Harry [Hole] believed in the existence of the soul. Not that he was particularly religious as such, but it was one thing which always struck him when he saw a dead body: the body was bereft of something, something that wasn’t to do with the process of physical change bodies undergo. Bodies looked like empty shells of insects in a spider’s web – the creature had gone, there was not the illusory afterglow that long-since burned-out stars have. The body was missing its soul and it was the absence of the soul that made Harry believe. Jo Nesbo, “The Devil’s Star”, pp 183-184.
       Stephen Cannell, who wrote and produced many popular TV series, including my favorite, The Rockford Files, died on Sept. 30, 2010, said during an interview: “I don’t want to be remembered as William Shakespeare or the most venal talentless person who ever lived. When I’m gone, it’s over. And people will make their own choices about me and hopefully what I’ve done is left great kids behind and a wife that’s (sic) had a good life.” “Business Jet Traveler” magazine, Feb/Mar 2010 issue.

Jury Is Still Out on Daffy's Ad

2010-11-07T14:21:00.000-07:00

Was the creative director to cute? However, I like the concept, copy and graphics. It is appealing without being tasteless.

Which Ad Is Most Tasteless? And Who Is the Target Audience?

2010-11-07T13:55:00.001-07:00

Both of these ads were cut from the New York Times.

Digital photos can reveal your location, raise privacy fears

2010-10-30T09:59:00.001-07:00

From CNN Tech... How to safeguard your privacy.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/web/10/15/photo.gps.privacy/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Thinking Differently But Similarly

2010-06-01T17:49:00.003-07:00

My May 13 post, Living Large by Thinking Small, featured an image of several mobile homes stack Pueblo-style. Compare it with the image in the June 2010 edition of Dwell.
You can see that they are very much the same idea, one is just more elegant.

Now We Know Why Gore Purchased the Large Digs

2010-06-01T17:27:00.003-07:00

Now we know why Al Gore, "Dr Green", purchased a 6,500 sq. foot that home boasts six bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a large pool house, six fireplaces, wood framed french doors, and carved stone detailing throughout.
He and Tipper have separated after 40 years of marriage. Too bad.
Who gets the house?

Al Gore's Vacation Pad Is Not Green

2010-05-18T08:48:00.001-07:00

In my earlier post I discussed our need for space. And now Al Gore, "Dr Green", purchases a 6,500 sq. foot that home boasts 6 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms, a large pool house, 6 fireplaces, wood framed french doors, and carved stone detailing throughout.
What is wrong with this picture?
Why do two people need a resort hotel for a vacation home?
Yes, I know that he will have his extended families visiting and all types of politicos and celebrities, but let's be real.
Image from Huffington Post www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/17/photos-al-goree-new-8875_n_579286.html

"Oak Creek" Painting Finally Finished

2010-05-13T12:03:00.000-07:00

Living Large by Thinking Small

2010-05-13T07:30:00.001-07:00

One of our more endearing American traits is our need to supersize. Everything. We love our small home-sized SUVs, our appetites and belt sizes are larger than most other humans, and our dwellings, too, are the size of small communities in other countries.

In days gone by, if you had a big yard you were living the dream. But land in the suburbs began to become harder to come by as developers found they could make more money by putting increasing the density of houses per acre. So as land became scarcer, the other option for the higher middle class was to increase square footage. And we did.

The pejorative McMansion, first appeared in the San Diego Union-Tribune in 1990, referring to an unusually large house on a very small lot. Other pejoratives include "garage Mahal," "starter castle" and "Hummer house."

We’re now coming to the realization that bigger isn’t necessarily better or affordable. The bursting of the housing bubble may change the way we look at the size of our dwellings.

It’s my view that our dwellings have become much too large, much too expensive to purchase and too costly to ventilate, especially factoring in that the average U.S. family consists of only 3.4 people. And we are wasting valuable natural resources to build and maintain unused space.

It is time to think differently: Small is the New Big!

I read a recent article in Dwell magazine about a business executive who downsized from a sprawling 3000+ sq. ft. house to a cozy 800 sq. ft. place. He was able to build it on the roof of his industrial building as a custodial quarters and 800 sq. ft. was maximum allowed by code.

In a humorous e-mail exchange, a friend sent this picture of different sized mobile homes arranged Pueblo style. It looked like redneck chic at first, but it slowly grew on me as very creative applications of easily accessible housing units.

On my way to work I pass by a yard stacked with hundreds of portable construction office containers. These are very much like the shipping containers you’d see on trains or container ships, except each has a door, window and H/AC units. I visited websites of these container manufacturers and these can be outfitted very comfortably. Architects around the country are exploring interesting ways to capitalize on the abundance of these containers to create affordable and comfortable low cost dwellings.

The businessman living in the rooftop loft said that he roamed his large house wondering why he needed all that space. I wonder myself sometimes whether I need the 2000 sq. ft. with two H/AC units that I live in.

Wikipedia References:

^ INTERIORS; Getting Smart About Art of Living Small. Los Angeles Times, September 19, 1998. The size of the average new single-family home has gone from 1,520 square feet (141 m²) in 1971 to 2,120 square feet (197 m²) in 1996, according to "1998 Housing Facts, Figures and Trends," published by the National Assn. of Home Builders. "But not everyone is living in a McMansion or aspires to it," said Gale Steves, editor of Home Magazine. "Every time we do a small house in the magazine, there is lots of mail."

^ Cheever, Benjamin - CLOSE TO HOME; Life in a Crater Will Do, For Now. New York Times, August 27, 1998. Twenty mansions were planned for the development, each designed to look like the biggest house in town. The McMansion we thought of as ours had an enormous kitchen, more than two stories high.

^ Filter, Alicia (2006-04-20). "McMansions: Super-sized homes cause a super-sized backlash". Illinois Business Law Journal. http://www.law.uiuc.edu/bljournal/post/2006/04/20/McMansions-Super-Sized-Homes-Cause-a-Super-Sized-Backlash.aspx.

^ Chiu, Lisa (2006-06-08). "Big homes on small lots crowd Kirkland neighbors". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003046945_lotsize08e.html.

Going “Back in the Day”

2010-04-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

I am on the fast track towards my sixth decade which invariably leads to heightened introspection about successes, failures and acquaintances from "back in the day."

During my all too rare moments of reflection, I think about friends, enemies and acquaintances from “back in the day.” How have their lives been lived compared to mine? Should I attempt to reconnect? And if I do, will they reciprocate?

And, is it really worth it?

Tom Ruprecht*, writing in the New York Times last month, stated it well, “We were close once. It felt wrong that we’d gone through 22 years of life experiences without talking. If we reconnected... could we still be friends? Does the raw material for friendship remain intact despite decades of separation?”

Though I feel the tug to connect, I know my old acquaintances are no longer the people I once knew, nor am I a person they would recognize. Sure, we will have certain life experiences in common, but those shared experiences that forged our friendships decades ago no longer tie us together. The raw materials of friendship, as Ruprecht called it, are tenuous at best, for each of us is shaped by different life experiences. And if we don’t stay in touch regularly, our individual trajectories diverge over the decades like galaxies moving away from one another at ever-increasing speeds.

A year or so ago I received a friend request on my Facebook page from a good friend during my high school years. He and I exchanged an e-mail or two shortly afterwards. But despite my attempts to re-engage – only silence. I’ve reached out to some others from art school with varying levels of success. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Hell, I can’t even get my brothers to return my calls!

My supposition is that it is not worth the effort. I will concentrate on nurturing my current friendships rather than attempting to re-establish dormant ones.

*http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/magazine/04lives-t.html

Why and How I Chose My Android OS for My Smartphone

2010-04-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

Apple was first out of the gate with its short-lived Newton PDA. Then Microsoft developed a slimmed down version of Windows for PDA. Handspring, now Palm, excited us for a short time. However, 2002 was the big year for the “smartphone” with Ericsson, Handspring, Sony+Ericsson and RIM all introducing systems that combined PDA and phone functionalities into one handset. RIM’s Blackberry line was adopted by business and is still the best selling line today. In 2008 Apple returned in a really big way, shaking up the industry and shifting the paradigm. I won’t go into this in detail because we all know how the iPhone changed things.

Last year my spouse convinced herself that she should make the leap from a regular cell to a more robust system for e-mail, texting and Internet, so she purchased a Blackberry Curve. Now you can’t pry it out of her hands! I’ve had a Blackberry for a number of years for work and a regular personal-used cell, but was considering updating my personal cell to an iPhone-like device.

I was very intrigued by the iPhone with its large touch screen, thousands of applications, music player, etc. However, I didn’t want to switch from my current carrier to AT&T (business phone is AT&T, enough said). And I didn’t want to accept Apple’s domineering control over all aspects of the device (see my post iPass on iPad). But I did use the iPhone as the standard on which I would compare the alternatives offered by my carrier.

Phone Must-have Features

Upgrading my current phone and plan were significant investments, so I wanted the most flexibility and productive applications for the long term. Using the iPhone as the model, my must-haves were:

1. Large touch screen

2. Full QUERTY keypad, not just the touch screen version

3. Feature-rich phone and plan

4. At least 8MB of SD memory

5. An OS that will grow incrementally so I won’t have to replace phone or plan with each upgrade

While my spouse was purchasing her phone (takes almost as long as buying a car) I spent some time with the newly release Palm Pre and was very impressed. The phone immediately became number one on my list, at the time the only one because my research was not systematically underway.

I actively began my research about the same time as the hype surrounding the new Verizon Droid was spooling up. This was the first time that I had heard about the Google Android OS. I developed a table listing all the operating systems with the features and pros and cons of each. I included Apple, Android, Palm and even Microsoft. Microsoft was quickly eliminated and then Palm. My hesitation with Palm was that the company wasn’t building on its early momentum with the Pre. That left Android as the only alternative to Apple.

Why Android?

Android is a system that includes the OS, middleware and key applications and uses a modified version of the Linux kernel. It was originally developed by Android, Inc, a firm that was purchased by Google and the Open Handset Alliance.

Google and Android are and will be a continuing competitor with Apple on several fronts, especially in the applications arena. Each company’s third-party apps number in the tens of thousands. This was very important to me. As I mentioned in my post about the iPad, I prefer having more control than Apple allows. Since Android is an open source OS, it doesn’t control all aspects of the user experience like Apple does. I am willing to accept some risk for more control.

Now, the Phone

Once I settled on the Android system, I had to figure which phone was the most appropriate for my needs. Using the iPhone physical specifications as the guide I found four phones that my carrier that offered most of my must-haves.

1. Samsung Instinct S30

2. Samsung Moment

3. HTC Hero

I then compared screen size of each, overall dimensions and whether there was an attached keypad. The HTC Hero was my favorite but was eliminated because it lacked the keypad. The Moment turned out to be the best choice based on all criteria. So in late November I went to the local Radio Shack and upgraded to the Moment. Overall it has been a good all around smartphone but there are a few drawbacks.

Changes I’d Like to See – Google OS and Carrier

The operating system updates require much effort and time. It would be nice if the carrier could seamlessly download the updates wirelessly and transparently. Currently, all data within applications must be saved to the SD card and the card removed. The process also removes all installed apps from the handset’s internal memory, so each app has to be reinstalled afterwards.

I know that this is asking more than will ever be available, but a consistent internal hardware/software infrastructure be incorporated so every handset could have the same OS. That way a custom version doesn’t need to be developed for each carrier.

And there is one more item on my wish list – having my iMac recognize the SD card. But I know this will NEVER happen.

Changes I’s Like to See – Samsung Moment Handset

The Moment handset accepts up to a 16MB SD card, but the price for a card with that much memory is presently over $110 retail. I am hesitating to purchase an 8MB card because I prefer to have just one card. Why just one card? Because in order to change cards the phone must be turned off, the back taken off and the battery removed in order to get to the card. This is a real pain in the neck. The slip-out keypad is probably a contributing factor in this design.

Android OS rates four stars out of five in my book and the phone three and a half. I am very pleased overall.

iPass on iPad

2010-04-06T19:00:00.000-07:00

Now that the Apple iPad has hit the stores, we can move beyond the hype and see what the pad can do and speculate on how it will develop. That's someone else's job though because I won't be buying one.

Let me state upfront that I am an Apple fan from way back. The company makes simply the best computing and music products in the world. I have an iPod Mini and an iMac (the one with the “bubble bottom”) that is now, in Apple parlance, a legacy device. And I hope to purchase a MacBook Pro within the next year.

This Apple fan will be iPassing on the iPad, however. It has nothing to do with the first edition deficiencies already mentioned in the media – lack of USB port (more on this later), can’t multitask or play Flash files (more on this too).

No, it’s all about control. Because I – and you – won’t have any!

Apple has finally designed the product that keeps ultimate control in its own sphere. It got close with the iPod and iTunes store, closer with the iPhone and App Store, and with the iPad it has achieved the digital, modern-day version of the company town. Apple owns the product, its ingredients, the store, everything. Once you’ve bought it, you’re locked in for good. No choices, only those Apple chooses for you. And only through Apple's network.

Or as the Eagles' song Hotel California stated, “… you can check in but you can’t check out…”

Dan York, on the blog voxeo, quoted Harvard professor Jonathan Zittrain (in an article on Feb. 3, 2010, entitled “A fight over freedom at Apple’s core“):

This is the significance of the iPad. It could have been built either like a small Apple Macintosh – open to any outside software – or as a big iPhone, controlled by Apple. Apple went with the latter. Attach a keyboard to it and it could replace a PC entirely [now] – boasting plenty of new apps, but only as Apple deems them worthy… Users no longer own or control the apps they run – they merely rent them minute by minute.

It’s not outside the realm of possibility that the company’s engineers will develop a way to block Internet content. One of my scenarios is that Apple will block Google Search or Maps because it is now one of Apple’s strongest competitors in the smart phone OS space.

Apple as iCensor

I understand that companies want to tie customers to them as much as possible, Microsoft, Google and Amazon are but three examples. This is perfectly legitimate, but Apple has become fanatical in its quest for total control. I mentioned the lack of a USB port earlier. The iPad’s lack of one wasn’t because it wouldn’t fit – no, it’s absent because it would provide owners with a path to bypass company control. You could exchange information without Apple! Yikes, can’t have that!

And Flash. Gone. Because, once again, Apple will be developing its own propriety software that content publishers, such as the New York Times, will be required to use for iPad. Many smaller organizations may not be able to afford to create content for both iPad and other devices like the Kindle. I know what I would do – Apple for self-preservation. The company’s reach will now entangle content providers, and Apple's influence, pricing and content control increases.

Apple as WalMart. Oh my.

I don’t want to paint a too dark or melodramatic picture. Apple is a great company, makes fabulous products and I have the utmost respect for it. And the iPad is just another of its long line of successful game-changing products. I just prefer a tool with which I have some modicum of control, rather than the other way around.

In my next post I will discuss why I chose to go with Google’s Android OS in my cell phone.

Sorry That I Haven't Posted

2010-04-05T18:47:00.000-07:00

The holidays were a blur for me -- my daughter got married over Thanksgiving weekend, relatives visited shortly afterwards and then it was Christmas. I was sick for six weeks after the holidays, so did not feel like switching on my computer after work. Now that I'm better, I hope to post more regularly.

Thought Showers

2009-11-25T14:11:00.001-07:00

Here is another edition of my sporadic random thoughts and comments on sports, politics and whatever else zoomed into my consciousness today.

Let’s remember our women and men in our military services this Thanksgiving – no – let’s think of them every day. Pray for them and contribute to organizations that support families of the fallen and those who have come home severely and permanently maimed. There is no reason that a mom or dad should have to quit a job to stay home to attend to their injured daughter or son. I am willing to pay extra taxes to support wounded soldiers for their lifetimes if necessary. Are you?

Now on to less important subjects.

College football: Special legislation should be enacted to outlaw a NCAA Division I-A team from playing a Division I-AA or Division II teams. University of Florida’s blowout of Florida International (62-3) recently was an embarrassment for both schools and the NCAA. These games should not count toward the BCS standings.

And why do college sports coaches make so much money? Colleges and universities should consider spinning off their sports programs into profit centers for the institution as a whole. Since most athletes aren’t students anyway, they could be paid and considered semi-pro.

Congratulations to Jimmy Johnson for winning his fourth NASCAR championship in a row. Even though the point margin between the top five was fairly small, it was really no contest. The other teams are going to have to step up their games or NASCAR will continue to lose fans. And NASCAR needs to figure out how to keep cars from running out of gas or crashing during the last 10 laps. Too many races this year ended 10 laps short.

How come most of the articles within the technology sections of the NY Times, USA Today, Washington Post and Business Week are about video game releases and reviews? It seems to me that video games should be covered in the entertainment sections and the tech sections should concentrate on technology, products and services.

The airline industry hasn’t yet escaped hard times. I will agree that oil prices, the recession and security checks haven’t been kind to the industry or its customers. This is only part of the problem however. Many airlines go out of their way to make it frustrating for passengers. Each airline should return to including the cost of all services related to getting me to my destination – air crew, reservations, fuel, baggage, etc., into the price. Forget the existing ala cart pricing schemes like cost of extra bags, fuel and special surcharges. Let’s take bag charges as an example. Since the airlines have begun charging for checked bags, passengers are bringing more and bigger bags onto the plane. The result is longer boarding and deplaning times and increased frustration when the overhead bins are full when boarding is only partially completed.

Recently, Newsweek magazine ran an article about Sarah Palin and the cover shot was an image of her in a track suit. It was not only an insult to Ms. Palin but to all women. In my opinion, Ms. Palin is a “celebrity without portfolio” (definition: those who have not really accomplished anything but are famous for just being), but she is taken seriously by many women and men. Newsweek would not have pictured Joe Biden or Mitt Romney in “bike tights.” So why Ms. Palin. You can do better Newsweek!

Why does every issue debated these days include abortion?

The Gated Community Movement Soon To Take Over Our Highways

2009-10-16T12:07:00.003-07:00

There has been a movement afoot over the past few years to privatize government-provided services such as public schools, garbage pick-up, local and state prisons and now roadways. The current budget crisis in the states, especially here in Arizona, is accelerating the move toward privatization of highways.

Arizona’s precarious budget situation is providing conservative and libertarian politicos with the opportunity to sell off state buildings and privatize services so they do not have to raise taxes, even for a short time. According to the Oct. 16, 2009 issue of the Arizona Republic newspaper, Gov. Jan Brewer has signed a law allowing public-private partnerships to build toll roads.

This transfer of services from public to private has serious consequences for rich and poor alike.

During the past 25 years the gap between rich and poor has increased tremendously. As the gated community trend infiltrates other sectors once managed by local and state governments, this gap will be further exacerbated.

Gated communities were designed and approved by local zoning boards – many with authorization to set own rates for utilities and services – to be fortress-like enclaves so the rich would be protected from “criminal elements [read poor].” Steven Graham and Simon Marvin in their book Splintering Urbanism, stated that by taking advantage of this infrastructural consumerism, a filtering of local connectivity is taking place. This ‘glocal” concept creates exclusive private governments with the best utilities and services, while the poorer citizens are left with aging infrastructures and little resources for improvements.

Toll roads are similar in concept. Toll roads will generally benefit only those who have the resources to pay the toll. All others will have to take the more crowded and less maintained existing roads. Well-off citizens will zip along while the rest will poke along.

Privatization very effectively transfers public governance to the private sector. And we have all experienced recently how the private sector can run amuck. Especially when the profit motive is the primary driver. An example of how this private political structure (the glocal) works is found in Central Florida. The State of Florida ceded several hundred thousand acres of land to the Walt Disney Corporation in 1967. The Reedy Creek Improvement District is a private government. The District has the power to borrow money, organize and manage its own police and fire departments, develop and manage an airport, provide utilities and even develop cities. [For more information on the district: http://www.economicexpert.com/a/Reedy:Creek:Improvement:District.html]

Toll roads have negative implications for those able to afford to use them. Most toll roads provide automatic billing for regular users, similar ePass. What most of these ePass users do not understand is that they are being continually monitored. A record of their use can be admitted as evidence in a court-of-law. Not only that, each e-user’s car is timed from the beginning to end. If they go too fast, as measured by the electronic signals in ePass, a ticket for speeding will be issued by mail. Just another way for the government, limited as it will be, to keep tabs on even the richest among us. And the private company profits from both the toll and your speeding ticket.

Lord & Taylor: "A Very Honorable Mention"

2009-10-11T16:53:00.002-07:00

Here I go again, critiquing advertising. No, I'm really neither a right-wing zealot nor a far-left feminist, just a concerned art guy who doesn't believe in pedestrian or "lazy" advertising.

This Lord & Taylor ad has a whole lot going against it; the ad is an affront to women, African-American women in particular, and good taste.

There is an intense debate in the African-American community around whether whether there is a tendency of successful African-American men choosing Caucasian women for mates. This ad turns the tables on the debate, show a the woman flashing a White guy.

Would there be an outrage if it was a guy, Black or White, flashing a woman of either race? Indeed, if it was a Black guy doing the flashing, all heck would break loose.

The headline implies that wearing a Lord & Taylor trench coat could be naughty. I guess if the target customers were hookers, then this might make some "sense." However, I'm betting only a small number women can afford afford those coats in these tough economic times.

The Lord & Taylor advertising manager should have had better sense than to allow this ad to go further than a concept.

The only appropriate visual in the ad is the stop sign, as in stopping this nonsense!

Advertising We Can Do Without: Fragoli Liqueur Wins Very Honorable Mention

2009-10-11T12:14:00.013-07:00

The Fragoli campaign, "Forbidden Fruit," earns a Very Honorable Mention award the Advertising We Can Do Without Awards program. Their ad for "Imported Liqueur with Hand Picked Whole Wild Strawberries" features a woman reclining nude in apparent ecstasy with a set of full, red lips (obviously female) overlaid from her bottom to shoulder. What is with the lips, sensuous as they are? Is she reaching for the strategically placed bottle of liqueur also in red (strawberries are red after all)?

Ad number two, also the the "Forbidden Fruit" headline is featuring Fragoli Passion, a Prosecco Spumante. Five very sexy women in very short skirts are intert

wined in a "passionate way," all but one of the women have their hands on the others. Four of the women appear to be ready to kiss each other. Hmmmm... The same image is on its website.

I am going to to let the images speak for themselves and each has a lot to say. Do they ever! The art director used every visual trick to steer your eyes to the most "forbidden places." Notice pearls on women far right bottom.

But are these ads effective for selling liqueur to women?

Or is the target men?

One last comment. The Photoshop artist who touched up the fluted glasses gets a C- on the effort. They look like they were added in.

The Gray Knight Over Buck island

2009-10-05T19:25:00.004-07:00

Notice the gray cloud just behind the lighthouse, doesn't it look like the knight on a chess board? Some may wonder why I painted a chess knight, was there some hidden secret or talisman? No. The cloud was actually there. I paint all of my landscapes from photos that I actually took and the knight was an actual cloud formation in that approximate location.

Quick Landscape Outside Sedona, Arizona

2009-10-02T13:43:00.002-07:00

This painting was done very quickly, under 10 hours. I used a wide brush, a #10, applying the paint over wide areas. The rough-in was done within an hour and could have been considered done in the abstract.

My green areas improved over the Cloud Study painting. The foliage is more 3-d appearing, more detailed and more realistic in color. I especially like the background greens and the tree on the right side.

I am now working on a stream bed mixing copious amounts of linseed oil in order to create the allusion of "wet."

Cloud Study

2009-10-02T13:31:00.002-07:00

It's been several months since my last post; I've been painting, working, working.. you know all the excuses.

My cloud study over Buck island in the U.S. Virgin Islands is now finished. I am making progress, especially with managing green. The greens are still too intense but getting more realistic. I've been spending a fair amount of time looking at greens during all times of the day and in various weather conditions. Unfortunately, we haven't had my variability in weather in Phoenix lately.

As I spend time looking at the painting on my wall, I would do several things differently. Primarily, reduce the size of the lighthouse. I enlarged it for the painting. If it were smaller, the clouds would have had even more drama. The stones on the beach, too, would be more defined and with more variation of color.

Marketing Doodles: Ideas Who's Time Is Now -- Updating the Blue Light Special

2009-07-04T11:22:00.009-07:00

I like to critique commercials to the consternation of my family (I mentioned that in an earlier post) and one of the ones that I regularly comment on is Kmart's and its "blue light" cartoon character. I remember Kmart's "blue light specials" from when I was a child -- 40 years ago -- when there was an in-store announcement in the laundry aisle and the blue police light would start flashing and everyone would run over to see what was on special. Well, back to my thinking about the cartoon character.

Today's character is hyping savings, savings, etc. Just like Walmart, Kohl's and all other big box retailers. But the cartoon does not relate to today's reality. I strongly urge that Kmart update the character from the old fashion energy wasting bulb to the new compact fluorescent (CL) bulb.

This change would accomplish several things for Kmart while repositioning its image. The CL character would update Kmart to a 21st century company. Kmart is all about saving money, so showing an energy saving character will re-enforce that both overtly and subliminally. And, the buzz in the marketing trades would move Kmart to the forefront of strategic branding. The Tropicana orange juice re-branding and packaging fiasco is still generating ink. And the leader in Kmart's space, Walmart, has received negative press on its recent branding changes.

Sears Misses the Mark

Recent commercials for Sears (owner of Kmart by the way) appliances are non-starters. The "Blue Appliance Crew" works for me. But when a guy goes into the appliance section and states, "My wife told be to spend all day looking for a washer and drier..." How idiotic! What woman in her right mind would let her husband shop alone for these appliances? I'm not being sexist here, but most men do not even know how to sort laundry much less actually do it. Women still do a majority of the household chores. So she would pick out the appliances that suite her needs and wants. Would a guy tell his wife to go spend the day shopping for tools? Not on your life.

So Sears, take a strong hint. Scuttle the commercial. Women are sneering at you.

Finished: Ford Island Tower

2009-06-30T10:22:00.005-07:00

The painting is now finished, though I'm not satisfied with the foreground. I was trying for "midday greens" but they are still too saturated.

My next painting will be a study of storm clouds over Buck Island in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Painting Update: Ford Island Tower, Pearl Harbor

2009-06-19T08:56:00.009-07:00

My painting of the Ford Island tower is my latest project. I am working from a photo taken while visiting the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

I am intrigued with old buildings -- barns, WWII airfield building in the UK, factories and regular rundown homes. The Ford Island tower consists of two different control towers. The "short" one on the left is the tower dating back to before Dec. 7, 1941. The very tall one that dominates the painting was built following the Dec. 7 attack to look out for submarines.

I am about 75 percent finished now.

My next painting will be a cloud study at Buck Island, U.S. Virgin Islands. Also considering a geometric abstract of a tornado.

Stay tuned.

Retailers – Do We Really Need Them All?

2009-06-04T18:41:00.001-07:00

The country’s current economic situation is still in a critical condition, especially in the retail sector. Many of the best known retailers have encountered double digit declines in sales and profits. Unfortunately, most economists believe the situation will not significantly change for 18 months or more. And that consumer spending must increase for the turnaround to begin.

We are entering a transitional phase in how we view consumption. Many free-spending consumers have faced the new, stark economic reality that they no longer have the capacity to buy everything they previously thought they needed. An example is the flat screen television arms race – it is ending. We are realizing that a 56 inch monitor does not provide any more enjoyment than the 40 inch version.

My wife and I have adjusted our view on what we really need. While we are both currently employed, we have experienced pay cuts and the like. We now do a cost-benefit analysis on major expenditures -- those above $500. Yes, we have reduced the threshold of what a major expenditure is. Additionally, we have created a budget system that tracks our spending and provides guidance on how we allocate for discretional spending for nights out, etc.

If consumers do something similar, and I believe they are, this will have major ramifications for the retail economic landscape. I am predicting a wholesale consolidation in the sector. We do not need or can support a whole host of retailers selling the similar products, most will no noticeable differentiation. A notable example is found in fashion retailing. Macy’s, Dillards, and JC Penney all offer similar and, in many stores, the same fashions and accessories at similar price points and customer service levels. If the names were removed, I’ll bet that you would not be able to tell which retailer you were in. And the same argument applies to the specialty stores in most malls.

This transitional phase can have a silver lining. This is an opportune time to re-evaluate what we want capitalism and our economy to become. More on this soon.

Mt Hayden from Pt Imperial Finished

2009-05-18T16:57:00.003-07:00

Capri Pants and Baseball Pajamas

2009-05-03T10:54:00.004-07:00

George Will recently wrote a column in the Washington Post* arguing that “[Denim is a] blight on Americans' surfaces. Denim is the infantile uniform of a nation in which entertainment frequently features childlike adults…” He is essentially arguing that Americans are turning into a slovenly society. And he has a point.

Let’s take it beyond blue jeans.

My issue is Capri pants in any fabric on women. You know – those trousers that go only to mid-calf. They are everywhere. In the workplace. In church. And the gym. Actually, the gym is the only place they should be worn. Women of every body style are wearing them and that’s just wrong. Capris are designed for very tall, skinny women, those who make up only about one percent of the entire population.

Mr. Will stated, “Denim is the clerical vestment for the priesthood of all believers in democracy's catechism of leveling -- thou shalt not dress better than society's most slovenly. To do so would be to commit the sin of lookism -- of believing that appearance matters.” Well, let’s commit the sin of lookism anyway!

Capris should not be seen on women (or men) in public.

Except in the gym and on baseball players.

I am a casual baseball fan with a traditionalist bent. Has anyone paid attention to today’s uniforms? The look like pajamas! Or like clothes you would see down in the ‘hood. Unlike football players, swimmers, and track and field athletes who must be poured into their respective “uniforms,” baseball players do the opposite – wearing yards more fabric than necessary.

Most players are wearing pants that are a foot or more too long and much too baggy. I’m surprised that a player has not broken an ankle because he got tangled up in his pants. And more to the point -- today’s uniforms inhibit running. I was watching a slow motion replay of a runner being thrown out at first base. He was a nanostep from beating the throw. He may have been safe if the extra uniform hadn’t acted as a reverse sail slowing him down.

Let’s put capris on the ball players! And get back to the more traditional baseball uniforms. And maybe the runner will beat the throw more often.

And women of the world – pants to the ankles are best!

*Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/15/AR2009041502861.html

The Painting Is Progressing Well

2009-04-29T19:11:00.007-07:00

I spent most of an afternoon adding detail to Mt. Hayden peak (center) and working the background. Depth is more evident now.

My New Studio Is Established

2009-04-14T19:33:00.005-07:00

I will be posting pictures of my studio soon. The underpainting will be painted tomorrow evening and I will begin applying paint to canvass this weekend. However, I thought I would post a picture of one of my pen and ink drawings. Unfortunately, it was never finished because it was water damaged when the photographer's roof leaked.

Great Commercial Idea Travelers Insurance

2009-04-08T19:06:00.004-07:00

Regular readers of this blog have noticed that I have been very hard on art directors, their agencies and client advertising managers. However, this post will compliment the Travelers Insurance company and its advertising agency. The series of three commercials that I saw tonight is named "Style Shorts."

The series introduces a couple (married) of entrepreneurs who love coffee. The first installment introduced the couple and their yen for the bean. It was followed by video of the coffee house they were developing and its design elements. The final installment showed their handwork and described their business philosophy. The couple shared the voice over with the announcer. It was just wonderful.

I will admit that this type of treatment won't necessarily work for a vast majority of products or services, but for insurance, it was ideal. Granted, the commercials relied heavily on design as a subject and it was shown on HGTV. But it was, however, compelling and interesting enough for me to want to see the next installment.

Imagine if flooring manufacturers, Home Depot or Lowes (they, to their credit, attempted to do this with the Biltmore series) made interesting commercials like this. Television might be more interesting!

Thank you Travelers!

Back to My Art Roots -- Oil Painting

2009-04-07T16:56:00.000-07:00

I am moving ever closer to making the plunge back into painting after many years of pen and ink and digital art. I located a local art store via the web and priced all the necessary easels and painting supplies. These supplies are not as expensive as I feared, but nonetheless, I will be investing over at $600 to get started.
   Now that the commitment has been reconciled and budgeted, the next important decision is oil or acrylics. Each has pros and cons. Oils, for me, are easier to manipulate, but can release toxic vapors and be flammable. My research found a solvent called turpenoid, a thin, colorless, refined turpentine substitute that has the same properties as mineral spirits without the characteristically strong odor. This is a real plus!
   Acrylics dry fast are easier to clean up and store but I have not had previous success with the medium.
   Today, I am leaning toward oils.
   Since I’ve not painting in several decades, I wasn’t sure where to turn to for the beginning color palette. Problem solved. I did a web search on color palettes and presto – color information! And as I read these all it all came back to me. Cadmium red light. Naples yellow. Ultramarine blue.
   Stay tuned for my next post on my adventures into plastic media.

Tracing Complex Shapes In Photoshop Made Easier

2009-04-02T18:40:00.000-07:00

I have always had a hard time using the lassoing tools in Photoshop. Fortunately, I've discovered a trick that makes it more manageable and it's really simple.

The figure was a woman walking on the beach surrounded by a host of people and objects that were impossible to move. When I attempted to trace the entire figure at once the curser would latch on to an adjacent color of similar value or I would run out of tablet. When either of these occurred the lasso would become uncontrollable and I would have to start over again. Then it occurred to me to divide the image into manageable parts.

Breaking the task into smaller operations worked wonderfully. I traced the head and shoulders and then copy-pasted the lassoed portion onto a new layer. Then repeated on the midsection and so on. Since the legs we complex and adjacent to another's legs, I did each one individually.

When finished, I grouped the layers and merged. Then it was quite easy to do the final retouching on the ragged areas.

Hopefully, this technique will work on most of my future selection tasks.

Freelancers Union - Great Concept for the Self-Employed

2009-04-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

I was listening to the News Hour with Jim Lehrer this evening and was stopped in my tracks by a report about Freelancers Union.
   It was organized to assist the self-employed and independent contractors who do not receive benefits. According to its website, the Freelancers Union "is a nonprofit organization that represents the needs of America’s independent workforce though advocacy, information, and service.
   "Independent workers make up 30% of the nation’s workforce. We are freelancers, consultants, independent contractors, temps, part-timers, contingent employees, and the self-employed. Despite our contribution to America’s economy, we’re often left out of the social safety net. Most freelancers can’t access affordable insurance, are taxed more than traditional employees, and have limited access to protections such as unemployment insurance, retirement plans, and unpaid wage claims."
   I was self-employed for 10 years and this type of organization would have been a lifesaver.
   The organization, as far as I can tell, is only operating in the New York City area.
   I recommend that you checkout its website because we never know when the jobs we have today will be here tomorrow.
   Link: www.freelancersunion.org

AIG Bonuses -- A Watershed Moment

2009-03-22T13:31:00.000-07:00

The populist outrage over the recent reporting of executive bonus at AIG has finally given “voice” to the average middle class wage earner. While I am not “outraged,” I am aggravated that this is another example of the hubris – excessive egos – of executive management.
   Pat Lencioni writing in Business Week (Organizational Life, Jan. 9, 2009, http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/jan2009/ca2009019_926188.htm), “Believe[s] the pursuit of higher salaries, bigger bonuses, more lucrative stock options, and fluffier golden parachutes is more about keeping up with the Joneses than it is about money. CEOs know what their peers earn, and they want to compare favorably for the sake of their egos more than their bank accounts.”
   This is my belief as well. I recently came across an executive’s bonus, in these lean times, that equals my family’s income for 10 years! Yes, I understand that leaders are responsible to there boards, their CEOs, stockholders and employees, but when is enough too much?
   According to Sarah Anderson, John Cavanagh, Sam Pizzaigati and Mike Lapham, co-authors of Executive Excess 2008, How Taxpayers Subsidize Runaway Pay*, stated:
   Average Americans today work longer, harder, and smarter than they labored a generation ago. Yet they take home, after adjusting for inflation, less in wages than they did in the early 1970s.
   Some Americans, to be sure, are earning more these days than they did back then. Much more. In 2007, CEOs in the United States took home an average of $10.5 million, 344 times the take-home for typical American workers. Thirty years ago, chief executives averaged only 30 to 40 times the average American worker paycheck.
   We have reached a watershed moment. The AIG fiasco offers the opportunity to change the system. Now that a majority of wager earners have their investments in 401(k)s, we should be voicing our concern to the managers of these accounts. This is one sure way over time to change the system. And fund managers, acting on our behalf should change the current system of CEOs appointing their own boards of directors. Many boards have failed in their fiduciary responsibilities but that is a topic for another post.

*Link: www.faireconomy.org/files/executive_excess_2008.pdf

KOSMIX -- A New Search Engine That's Different Than Google

2009-03-15T12:57:00.000-07:00

The 3.15.09 edition New York Times has a interesting article about a new way to search. Kosmix finds information and presents it as "sort of multi-media encyclopedia." According to the Times, "The results are pretty satisfying and look as if they have been compiled by a human editor, not a computer."

I test drove it with decent results. I typed in Higgs Boson, a hypothetical massive scalar elementary particle predicted to exist by the Standard Model of particle physics, (in case you're interested) and the result was impressive. See the attached screen capture.

Future refinements should add to its usefulness. I would like to see some user-defined customization that allows for very deep searches, just not just the frequently accessed URLs.

The Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights [H.R. 5244] Too Little, Much Too Late

2009-02-16T14:09:00.000-07:00

The so-called "Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights" will take effect in July of 2010.

So what's going to change? Here are some of the highlights:

Universal Default Is No More - Universal Default will be a thing of the past. If a credit card is going to change its interest rate it has to be due to some action in the account.

Longer Billing Cycles - Credit card companies must mail statements 25 days before the due date.

No Double Cycle Billing - If you paid off your card last month, you won't have to pay interest on it if you are late next month.

Credit Cards Will Apply Payments Fairly - If you have two rates at different percentages, say a balance transfer and a cash advance, the credit card company cannot choose to move your payment to the lower interest one letting the high interest accumulate.

More Notice of Interest Rate Changes - In the past, card companies could change your interest rate in as little as 15 days. That's not a lot of time to react. Now you get a full 45 days.

Interest Rates Won't Raise Without Reason - Credit card companies would always say, "We can raise rates for any reason at any time." Now they can't - they have to have some kind of reason and notify the card holders with enough time to react. Except that during the next 18 months rates WILL INCREASE.

Since it does not take effect until July, 2010, the card companies are covering their bets by raising the rates and fees now!

My credit card company raised its annual percentage rates by two percent on future AND current balances. Amex is raising the minimum late fee from $29 to $39 , effective April 21. Another change is even more interesting. This is a direct quote from a recent company letter to cardholders:

"Currently, your Cardmember Agreement states that payment is due upon receipt of the billing statement we mail to you. As an increasing number of our Cardholders are receiving their statements online rather than through the mail, beginning on April 21, 2009, the Cardholder Agreement will read, "Payment for all Charges is due immediately upon receipt of the billing statement we provide you."

Guess in who's favor this change applies.

I am not saying that the card companies do not have the right to make these changes. My beef is that they are raising rates, adding on fees, canceling cards, and changing the contracts before H.R 5244 takes effect. Any benefit that the law had for consumers will be nullified during the 18 months before the 5244 takes effect.

And we have no recourse other than canceling the cards.

"Community" In Danger?

2009-02-14T14:23:00.000-07:00

My conservative and libertarian friends view our current economic predicament as the opportunity to realign what minimum specific services the states, counties and cities should provide and how these would be financed. Many of them do not believe in community projects or services such as road / highway infrastructure building, health care for the poorest among us, zoning regulations, etcetera.

Before I go any further, let me take this opportunity to very simply show the difference between, libertarians, conservatives, liberals and populist. There is a tendency to equate libertarianism with conservatism but though they share some traits, they are very different. Libertarianism is a wider “political” philosophy than conservatism, embracing high levels of both personal and economic freedoms. Conservatism tends mostly towards economic freedom spectrum with less regard for personal freedom. Liberalism (progressives), as would be expected, holds personal freedom in high regard but not so with economic freedoms. Populism tends toward totalitarianism – low regard for personal and economic freedom.

A libertarian acquaintance and I were discussing city thoroughfares over dinner recently. He argued that the state and local governments should not be in the road building business – or in any other business. He stated very directly that, “ Citizens should no have to pay for roads or any other modes of transportation. Roads should be built and managed by private enterprises and users would be charged a fee-for-service. If you don’t use the roads, you don’t pay for the service.” The same for public transit, fire and rescue, or public education. Bottom line, taxpayers should pay only for police and some administrative services and little else.

A similar theme is currently playing out in the state of Arizona’s legislature trimming of its remaining 2009 fiscal year budget deficit. The anti-government, anti-tax and anti-public education crowd in the state legislature now has a “anti-friendly” governor and is proceeding methodically to eliminate funding for everything that does not fit into their individualist philosophy.

But where does this leave us as a COMMUNITY? Must it really come down to everyone for him/herself?

I believe that government is not intrinsically evil, that it is a natural maturation of the community. Paraphrasing John Stewart Mill, the collective strengths of communities are necessary to accomplish what individuals cannot. Our individual talents, skills and treasure are pooled to most effectively achieve both individual and community good. The key is to BALANCE the needs of the individual and the needs of the wider community.

This is not easy, however, it requires open dialogue and a realistic understanding of the trade-offs required. Over the past thirty years an erosion of civic dialogue has led to a chasm that may take a decade or more to close, if it is even possible. Our current economic crisis offers an opportunity for a détente between the right and left. So far the crisis has hardened positions.

Trash Advertising or Lazy Art Directors

2009-02-10T17:22:00.001-07:00

I have been in the advertising business for a long time, so I am aware of the need attract attention and focus eyeballs on the page and the components that are necessary accomplish this.

The marketing and design literature states that the headline and visual / illustration must be emotionally and visually appealing enough to stop and draw the reader, with the body copy creating interest, developing desire for the product, and finishing with the call to action. Putting these components together effectively seems easy, but with today’s media oversaturation, fractured demographics and limited budgets, it is difficult to achieve.

This post is not meant to be a primer on how to create good and effective advertising or even whether an ad has to be good – in the “artistic sense” (to which all art directors aspire) – to be effective. As a student of the advertising I spend a significant amount of my time reviewing and critiquing ads out loud, sometimes with emphasis, much to the chagrin of my family.

My raison d’etre is to highlight the continuing the denigration of young women to sell all sorts of products – clothes and accessories, beer, liquor, and even window coverings. Three egregious examples are illustrated along with one very appropriate exception.

In ad number one, two women are spread-eagled in hot pants with the one in foreground holding a bag in a way that that draws the eye to her crotch. My term for this all too common phenomena is the crotch shot. The handle on the bag and the angle of her pants further accentuate that part of her anatomy. And what the woman behind her is doing? Why is she there?

Ad number two requires no further comment. The red phallic symbol masquerading as a beverage bottle and the headline – Forbidden Fruit – say it all.

The poor woman in number three is exploited any number of ways: Too much cleavage, the phallic wine bottle pointing at her chest, and then the ultimate insult – red wine being “poured” onto her lap. All while the male is not even paying attention to her! To sell curtains? The curtains are barely visible. Give her – and us – a break!

But there is a more appropriate depiction of a woman.

The model in the ad for a watch is the more appropriate depiction of a woman. She is classy, maybe even sassy, in a very tasteful way. The watch is obviously an elegant and expensive woman’s watch. The ad works well.

I am neither naïve nor a prude, but I do not believe that ads one, two and three position the respective products or brands in a positive way. Each one of the three attracted by attention but not for the right reason. Furthermore, the agencies that developed them are lazy! It takes a lot of time and effort to create effective handbags, beverages or curtains. Anyone can photograph a scantily clad woman or a man in inappropriate poses to attract attention. The real challenge is to sell the product and build the brand tastefully.