Advertising Age articles from October 2008

Advertising Age archives from October 2008

Creativity Top five.(Work)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... In this week's episode of Creativity's Top Five, Google distributes Earth Water by Tetra Pak to keep Advertising Week hydrated; Stockholm's Fi gets Mario's tubby evil twin to shake it; Hovis and agency MCBD loaf through history;Showtime makes...

Idea of the year: READER-generated content; Magazines are handing over space and even entire issues, but how much is too much?(Magazines: The A-List)
October 6, 2008... Byline: LARRY DOBROW Upon receiving the Henry Johnson Fisher Award from the Magazine Publishers of America in 2000, industry legend Don Logan noted the simplicity and ingenuity of the business model he helped perfect while he was overlord...

Magazine of the year: the economist; North American edition's ad pages, circulation rise as other newsweeklies' sink.(Magazines: The A-List)(advertising pages)
October 6, 2008... Byline: NAT IVES Five years ago, The Economist published an article headlined "House of Cards,'' surveying rising home prices from Washington to Sydney. Doesn't this heated market, the article asked, look just a bit dangerous? A...

DIGITAL CLIMBS AS AD PAGES SLIP; Time Inc. takes three of top five spots; Advance leads in overall pages; PC World earns biggest share from new platforms: 38%.(Magazine 300)(advertising)(Financial report)
October 6, 2008... Byline: MAUREEN MORRISON Magazine publishers trudged through a sputtering economy, holding ad pages comparatively steady while making solid digital gains. Magazine 300 ad pages in 2007 slid 1.3%, while circulation revenue fell 1.2%....

Executive of the year: elle's carol a. smith; Group publishing director has established magazine's position among fashion titles and capitalized on a partnership with 'Project Runway'.(Magazines: The A-List)
October 6, 2008... Byline: NAT IVES Carol a. smith brought little fashion experience with her when she arrived as publisher of Elle in 2002, the magazine's worst year ever. But Ms. Smith, former president of Time Inc. Ventures' Parenting Group and group...

Newspapers see rise in ads from financial companies.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: michael bush Could the financial meltdown actually be good news for the newspaper industry? Of course the near-daily collapse and sale of banks has made for hot copy in business papers such as The Wall Street Journal. But it...

It doesn't matter what exactly drinkability is; it just works.(Garfield's AdReview)(Bud Light)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Bob Garfield McCain v. Obama. Rescue v. bailout. Jimmie Johnson v. Carl Edwards. Roe v. Wade. As polarized as our society is, surely we can agree on one thing: Light beer isn't really beer. Oh, it's beer-ish. It's...

Communications agencies keeping busy during crisis.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: michael bush Banks aren't the only thing getting run on lately. The economic crisis has caused a near run on financial-communications agencies by companies looking for help in managing mergers or allaying customer fears. ...

FROM THE EDITOR: SOME NEW DEVELOPMENTS FOR AD AGE.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: jonah bloom Here at Ad Age we not only try to be first with news and smartest with analysis and data, we are also on the lookout for ways to make our products more relevant and useful to more of you. In that vein we've made a few...

ESQUIRE'S BIG ANNIVERSARY IDEA.(Magazines: The A-List)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: nat ives The digital cover may have turned out to be more a blinking gimmick than a game changer in the mold of that real-time USA Today front page in "Minority Report,'' but we still congratulate Esquire and Editor in Chief David...

THE question: Do you think it was a good idea for John McCain to suspend his campaign? 72% of poll respondents said Mr. McCain's move was a bad idea.(News)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: max lakin The political circus took up all three rings when John McCain said he would suspend his campaign in order to deliver his economic prowess to Washington. We asked Ad Age readers if they thought the move was effective, and...

Movers & Shakers.(Talentworks)
October 6, 2008... The rise of Jeff Lanctot continued last week as the 36-year-old was promoted from senior VP-global media to chief strategy officer at Avenue A/Razorfish. Ad Age has tracked Jeff's career for a few years now, and recognized him as one of...

Small brands could be J&J's next big thing; Company pushes niche skin-care line as rival behemoths lose share.(News)(Johnson & Johnson)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JACK NEFF Selling big, heavily extended brands at large retailers has been a cornerstone of success for the personal-care marketers for most of the decade. But as that business model shows signs of fraying, $61 billion Johnson &...

Which has the best ROI?(News)(return on investment)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Shopper marketing was top-ranked in ROI and just behind web/interactive advertising in spending-growth plans among package-goods executives and retailers who took part in a study by Deloitte and the Grocery Manufacturers Association. ...

Bentley eyes consumers with $25M annual income.(News)(Bentley Motors Ltd. revenue report)(Financial report)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JEAN HALLIDAY The rich may be different, but maybe not all that different in the current economic climate. Bentley Motors' U.S. sales slipped "25-odd percent'' this year, due to a combination of market conditions and...

GOING ON THE OFFENSIVE WITH NEW AD STRATEGY; Howe and his team target rivals with help from political advisers.(CMO Strategy)(advertising)
October 6, 2008... Byline: ANDREW HAMPP Time warner cable is going on the offensive with a marketing push that takes direct aim at its growing ranks of rivals and owes more to negative political advertising than classic brand efforts. In a TV campaign...

Current woes could lead to collaboration economy; on digital communications.(Digital)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Steve Rubel Gloom and doom are everywhere this fall. So I am not going to perpetuate it. Instead, I see the global economic meltdown finally kicking the industry into gear toward becoming more efficient, open and collaborative. ...

It's not just what bloggers are saying, it's who they are; PR becomes part of social media as marketers such as PBS Kids Sprout analyze, interact with costumers.(Digital)
October 6, 2008... Byline: BETH SNYDER BULIK When pbs Kids Sprout launched three years ago, it hired BuzzLogic to help monitor what bloggers were saying online. As useful as that was as a new player in the kids' TV space, Sprout execs soon realized they...

Keeping fit keeps business healthy, say top execs.(Talentworks)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Max Lakin If you were to happen upon imc2's Dallas office, chances are good that you would find a lot of people with their eyes closed. They're not asleep, though-not necessarily, anyway. More likely they're taking advantage of the...

LESSONS FOR MAD AVE FROM WALL ST; Take risks and change your business model to connect with consumers, but don't get greedy.(CMO Strategy)
October 6, 2008... Byline: AVI DAN Agencies can learn something from Wall Street these days-and there is no punch line here. In all the analysis, palpable anger, accusations and finger pointing of the past couple of weeks, one thing seems to have been...

The A List.(Magazines: The A-List)
October 6, 2008... 1 The Economist North American edition Parent: The Economist Group North American publisher: Paul Rossi Editor in chief: John Micklethwait Ad pages: 1,497.4 7.2% Total circulation: 747,254 7.6% ...

BofA, Sears lead minority brand-preference survey; Study followed Asians, African-Americans and Latinos in Dallas.(Hispanic)(Bank of America)(Sears Roebuck & Co.)(Survey)(Brief article)(Company rankings)
October 6, 2008... Byline: LAUREL WENTZ In a survey of multicultural consumers' brand preferences in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, Bank of America was rated the most popular bank, with Chase a not-very-close second among Hispanics, blacks and Asian-Americans....

The American Magazine Vanguard Awards.(MediaWorks)(Column)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Simon Dumenco Presenting the first annual AMVA's, recognizing magazines that are innovating smartly beyond print in the spring, around the time the American Society of Magazine Editors announced the nominees for the National...

Brand giants weakened as retailers get savvier; As media dollars, talent shift to stores, can CPG players preserve margins?(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JACK NEFF The store increasingly is becoming the focus not just of distribution but of marketing for package-goods players. But as attention and dollars shift there, it's raising big questions about the balance of power in the...

Subaru shows how to cut path through rough terrain.(Viewpoint essay)
October 6, 2008... As the marketing world tries not to panic amid all the talk of crises and bailouts, perhaps executives should turn to Subaru as an example. The auto manufacturer might not often be lumped in with the likes of Apple and Nike, but consider its...

As seen on AdAge.com.(Columns)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... As seen on AdAge.com/ smallagency Cleveland: This biz is always perilous A number of our employees have asked my partners and me if this economic situation is going to adversely affect us. Who knows what the future holds? Good or bad...

Grass roots: General Mills promotes healthful eating.(Hispanic)(General Mills Inc.)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: laurel wentz General Mills is expanding its Hispanic-marketing platform Que Rica Vida (What a Healthy Life), which includes a website and magazine about healthful living, with a grass-roots program to offer lessons about nutrition...

Media Morph: CBS gets a rude lesson in citizen journalism.(Digital)(CBS Broadcasting Inc.)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: michael learmonth Like a lot of news networks, CBS jumped on the citizen-journalism bandwagon with a free iPhone app, EyeMobile for iPhone, to enable users to upload news to its user-generated site, cbseyemobile.com. Interesting,...

How local media feel recession; Advertising may be cut as regional markets take impact of credit crunch.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: ABBEY KLAASSEN Unlike the last recession around 2001, when local markets stayed relatively insulated from the fallout of the dot-com bust, they are anything but immune to this one. And that's bad news for local media. "The flu...

P&G's Lafley: There's nothing we can do about it.(News)(A.G. Lafley of Procter & Gamble Co.)(Interview)
October 6, 2008... Byline: jack neff You might expect Procter & Gamble Chairman-CEO A.G. Lafley to disagree with the retailer-ascendancy theory. But he doesn't. Instead, interviewed briefly following a P&G press conference at Cannes in June, he outlined an...

Execs offer their 2o on $700B bailout plan.(News)(marketing executive's opinions on financial system and consumer confidence)
October 6, 2008... Byline: AD AGE STAFF Despite the passage of a massive bailout package, consumer confidence isn't likely to rebound anytime soon. The major stock indexes closed at their lowest levels in years, despite the bailout news, which came in...

People & Players.
October 6, 2008... new york: the city's most stylish Us Weekly throws a celebration for those on its "25 Most Stylish New Yorkers" list, including Tyra Banks and Kelly Ripa. (From l.) Ms. Banks; Ms. Ripa; Janice Min, editor in chief, Us Weekly; and Vicci...

Price of a 30-second spot slumps 4.1; Networks' prime-time ratings last year brought ad costs down with them.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: BRIAN STEINBERG Continued audience erosion, combined with the effects of the writers strike, helped drive the average cost for a 30-second commercial in prime time down 4.1% to $130,089 during the 2007-2008 season, according to an...

Consumers curtail consumption; Exclusive: Surveys show Americans texting less, brown-bagging more.(News)(Survey)
October 6, 2008... Byline: MATTHEW CREAMER The financial meltdown that's shaken the American economy to its core has already affected consumer spending, and in the coming months will make consumers more tightfisted when it comes to eating in restaurants,...

Jewish group uses creativity, comedy to fight politics as usual.(Columns)(Column)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Teressa Iezzi in the october issue of Harper's, Bernard Avishai writes about the purported importance of the Jewish vote to the Democratic presidential nominee. The article is called "Obama's Jews.'' In the piece, Avishai notes...

McCain makes big strides on YouTube; Obama leads in videos, but GOP nom increases visibility on site with ads.(News)(John McCain,Barack Obama)
October 6, 2008... Byline: MICHAEL LEARMONTH Sen. barack Obama is beating Sen. John McCain in the YouTube sphere, but with the help of advertising, the Republican candidate has been able to close the gap some. Where Mr. Obama has been posting vast...

Distributors, networks push for more ads in TV shows online.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: MICHAEL LEARMONTH Want more ads with your free web video? Not to worry; they're coming. Until now, online viewers have been able to watch TV with one substantial perk: fewer ads than if they watched the same show on TV. ...

States use tough times to tout their lotteries; Gov'ts alter messages, employ social networks to reach new audiences.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: RUPAL PAREKH Pay a little for the chance to dream big. That's the appeal of the lottery, and it seems it is recession proof. Even so, state governments are taking marketing of their lottos more seriously than ever, with different...

LETTERS: McD's takes issue with credit claims.(Viewpoint)
October 6, 2008... The Sept. 29 Ad Age article "Credit Crunch Takes Bite Out of McDonald's'' leaves readers confused. In it, the headline contradicts the article, and the article contradicts the facts. The introduction claims that issues with a major banking...

'Sunday Night Football' beats 'Grey's Anatomy'; Medical drama doesn't cost most anymore as live events attract ad dollars.(News)
October 6, 2008... Byline: BRIAN STEINBERG And ANDREW HAMPP Nbc's "Sunday Night Football'' has muscled its way past ABC's "Grey's Anatomy'' to become the most expensive fall program for advertisers on network TV in the 2008-2009 season. The NBC sports...

The biggest hit of the fall season.(News)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: john rash After all the speculation, America was very, very interested in the vice-presidential debate between Sen. Joe Biden and Gov. Sarah Palin on Oct. 2- so interested that 69.9 million Americans tuned in to watch. That...

THE MORE-FOR-YOUR-MONEY RACE; From Home Depot to Red Lobster, marketers pour on price cuts and promos in faltering economy.(News)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: EMILY BRYSON YORK And NATALIE ZMUDA Call it the great American fire sale. Marketers across the board are dialing up the more-for-your-money messaging in an effort to coax cash-strapped customers into opening their wallets, and...

Killing business casual at P&G one small step at a time.(Adages)(Kenyatte Nelson the brand manager of Procter & Gamble Co. awarded for his business clothing)(Honda's online marketing)(Newsweek Inc. preparing for its annual Women & Leadership conference)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Ken Wheaton Cincinnati is not exactly known as a fashion mecca. And Procter & Gamble Co., particularly since adopting "business casual'' a decade ago, isn't either. Or wasn't, until Kenyatte Nelson came along. The brand manager...

Very Short List offers glimpse at power of simplicity, editing.(Columns)(Editorial)
October 6, 2008... Byline: Jonah Bloom As someone whose main function in life is editing, I wonder, in the dark moments, whether I will soon be redundant. Perhaps I'll be outsourced. This year we've seen The Miami Herald and The Orange County Register...

Tampa Bay Rays get a P&G-style makeover.(News)(Procter & Gamble Co.)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JEREMY MULLMAN Under the guidance of a former Procter & Gamble brand manager, the Tampa Bay Rays have gone through the sort of transformation typical of deodorant sticks and shaving razors. First off, the team got a new...

Fall shows' ratings fall despite post-strike hype; 'House,' 'Heroes' and 'Grey's' all take beating as TV viewers tune out.(News)(Survey)
October 6, 2008... Byline: BRIAN STEINBERG All that brand-spanking-new TV programming that was going to lure viewers back after last season's writers strike? Not really doing the job. Ratings among viewers between the ages of 18 and 49-advertisers'...

Luxury cruisers wary of appearing too indulgent.(News)(Celebrity Cruises)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JEREMY MULLMAN Here's a conundrum in this worsening economy: If you're taking a luxury cruise, is it OK to flaunt it? That question seems to plaguing the advertising strategy at Celebrity Cruises, the upscale imprint of the...

Wal-Mart grinning big through the tough times.(News)(Wal-Mart Stores Inc.)
October 6, 2008... Byline: JACK NEFF Looking for a silver lining in the economy? It's shining brightly from Bentonville, Ark. Same-store-sales growth for Wal-Mart Stores is well ahead of dismal levels a year ago. Amazingly, Wal-Mart's margins are up too....

Presidential race goes to the dogs.(News)(Brief article)
October 6, 2008... Byline: andrew hampp The presidential race hit an unfortunate snag in contextual advertising with the Sept. 25 issue of Nature magazine. The U.K.-based science journal's cover featured a split-screen image of Barack Obama and John McCain...

Some bright spots in a gloomy year for magazines.(Magazine A-List)
October 6, 2008... Byline: NAT IVES It had been that kind of year: bad. When Ad Age editors started searching for the 10 outstanding titles that would compose our 2008 A-List, we found ourselves confronting some unpleasant news about the magazine...

EDITOR OF THE YEAR: nat geo's Chris johns; Former staff photographer has overseen redesign, expansion of title's editorial scope.(Magazines: The A-List)(National geographic)
October 6, 2008... Byline: LARRY DOBROW National geographic Editor in Chief Chris Johns is unassuming and thoughtful in ways most magazine editors are not. A question about the experiences that have influenced the way he edits the magazine prompts a...

How much will you save with a hybrid? Prius maps it out; Toyota tests Pixelometro app in increasingly environmentally aware Hispanic market via Terra.(Hispanic)
October 6, 2008... Byline: LAUREL WENTZ If pixels were miles, measuring the distance your computer mouse travels could be a cool way to digitally demonstrate that the Prius hybrid saves drivers fuel money they can spend on other things. And that's just what...

People & Players.
October 13, 2008... special report: american magazine conference The Magazine Publishers of America and American Society of Magazine Editors' annual gathering brought leaders from the worlds of publishing, movies, TV, advertising and politics to San Francisco...

Creativity Top Five: Oct. 6.(Work)(top five television programs)
October 13, 2008... In this week's episode of Creativity's Top Five, Sonic goes episodic and ties in to MTV's "The Hills"; Peter Sluszka directs one child's stop-motion imagination for EA Games SimCity Creator; 180 Los Angeles grows a Seventh Generation tree...

Online video popular across most demographics; on digital consumers.(Digital)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Mike Vorhaus As if you needed me to tell you, video is a hot consumer web product. In fact, half of all internet users in the U.S. ages 12 to 64 watch at least one video a week , and 10% watch every day-counting all age...

CROSSING BORDERS BY BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS; Coke Pacific exec on the opportunities and challenges of marketing in Asia.(CMO Strategy)(Darren Marshall)(Interview)
October 13, 2008... Byline: NORMANDY MADDEN For a sneak peek at the cool drink your 10-year-old will clamor for next year, look at what Asian kids are drinking today. Coca-Cola has long looked to Japan for ideas, and now other Asian markets such as China are...

Where the marketing elite meet.(Power Players)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Each Power Player is ranked according to measured and estimated unmeasured 2007 U.S. ad spending (40% of total score); marketing successes (30%); and 10% each for other marketing spending (such as sponsorships and events), leadership ability,...

Pay TV enjoys shelter from recession; Consumers loath to do without cable entirely, but some services suffer.(News)(Financial report)
October 13, 2008... Byline: ANDREW HAMPP Could "dexter'' get axed by the recession? As the credit crunch tightens, consumers might be eating out less, buying fewer cars and clothing, but it's a safe bet they won't cut off their cable or satellite-TV...

`Rescued' marketers must earn back consumer trust.(Viewpoint)(Viewpoint essay)
October 13, 2008... Note to those marketers lucky enough to be "rescued'' by the government: That bailout isn't a get-out-of-jail-free card. Why? It's simple. Despite the self-congratulatory hosannas raining down from Capitol Hill after a handful of companies...

Even search not immune to financial malaise; Google preps for worst as ad budgets get cut but might actually benefit.(News)
October 13, 2008... Byline: ABBEY KLAASSEN How bad is the economy getting? Bad enough that even Google is learning to cinch its purse strings. The online-advertising giant-which reports earnings this week-has, as usual, been tight-lipped about its...

THE HEAT INDEX; Weekly rating (0-10) of sizzle and fizzle.(MediaWorks)
October 13, 2008... 10 'The Daily Show' Averaged 2.2 million viewers per night last month, its most ever. Also had its most-viewed night Oct. 1 and has topped itself three weeks running. 8 'The Colbert Report' Riding on Jon Stewart's coattails, it averaged...

Movers & Shakers.(TalentWorks)(Steven Scebelo appointed as VP-business development at Creative Properties)(Howard Handler appointed as VP-head of marketing, North America, at EMI Music.)(Luane Kohnke promoted to senior VP-managing director, analytics and accountability at R/GA)
October 13, 2008... Byline: emily bryson york Arnold tapped a very qualified managing director and executive director of its McDonald's business last week: former Wendy's adman Gary Steele. During his decades with the Wendy's business, Mr. Steele worked...

Stars come out to celebrate Macy's 150th; Retailer taps heritage of celebrity partnerships, pop-culture integration.(Madison & Vine)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Natalie Zmuda The selection of a star as Macy's logo some 150 years ago can only be described as fortuitous. Since its founding in October 1858, the retailer has attracted star wattage in the form of actors, singers, designers...

Brands use web to tread once-forbidden ground.(DigitalNext)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Craig Daitch Is technology the catalyst for mixing politics and brands? Burger King's latest widget capitalizes on the presidential election. Burger King has just rolled out a campaign in the theme of the presidential...

Agencies should work on recruiting skills.(GenNext)(Advertising agencies)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Kelly Eidson Around this time in the fall semester, my inbox starts to flood with invitations to interview with organizations that are on campus looking for entry-level hires. I know it's only October and it seems way too early to...

I'm not waiting until May to be professional.(GenNext)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Leslie Green One of my professors asked me a question the other day that has been on my mind ever since: "When do you graduate?'' Judging by the tone of his voice, I knew May 17 was not the right answer, but I said it anyway....

How to help new hires swim instead of sink.(GenNext)
October 13, 2008... Byline: McKenzie Koch While I'm all for diving headfirst into the pool, I'd at least like to know how deep it is before I do. The same can be said for new employees. Whether they're arriving fresh out of school or as seasoned veterans,...

DRAFTFCB, TWO YEARS AFTER THE MERGER; This marriage was supposed to create a powerhouse agency. So where are the big wins?(News)
October 13, 2008... Byline: MICHAEL BUSH Mention draftfcb to an ad-industry professional or a casual industry observer, and odds are you'll be able to guess the reaction. The novice or industry outsider will identify it as the "Wal-Mart" agency-a...

Funeral directors get creative as boomers near great beyond.(Columns)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Lenore Skenazy These might be hard times for most folks in marketing, but one industry sees such boom times ahead it is unable to contain itself. Gleefully it contacted my friend the other day, startling her to the core. ...

Bollywood's Oscar entry is a film with a message.(Global Idea Network)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Mythili Chandrasekar Bollywood has the largest film output in the world, making at least twice as many films as Hollywood does in a year. And that's only the Hindi-language films. So you can imagine how difficult it is to choose...

Global hotshops need to prove value in India.(Global Idea Network)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Sourabh Mishra We are buzzing with the news of "global hotshops'' coming to India. BBH has announced its India team, and Naked is expected to do it soon, to be followed by Strawberry Frog. An implicit suggestion in all this...

Smart business ideas can thrive even in perilous economic times.(management of Sandy Pesman)(Column)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Rance Crain My dad started Advertising Age in the beginning stages of the Great Depression (only he didn't know it was the beginning of the Depression), so I've always been partial to new businesses that get started in...

Ahead for Iceland's 'cuddly generation': lots of haddock.(Global Idea Network)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Matthew Creamer But for the occasional feature on the band Sigur Ros or a Reykjavik tourist attraction, Iceland usually manages to stay out of the international news. Until the past few days, anyway, when the global financial...

As seen on AdAge.com.(Columns)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... As seen on AdAge.com/bigtent Improved Q scores for Hispanics Rochelle Newman-Carrasco writes: "The folks at Marketing Evaluations are in the process of launching their first Q study that focuses on the U.S. Hispanic consumer's...

What Chris Anderson's free economy looks like.(DigitalNext)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: David Armano Here's a recent illustration of how the web works. Chris Anderson, author of "The Long Tail,'' is working on his new book, in which he explores the notion of "free.'' Rather than hole himself up in a cabin somewhere...

It's time to do away with 'About Us' pages.(DigitalNext)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... Byline: B.L. Ochman You have an "About Us'' page on your website, right? And you always put one on client sites you build, right? I've always done that too. But no more. Let's ban "About Us'' pages! Because if visitors need to go to a...

Is your snazzy new site cloaked in invisibility?(DigitalNext)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Stephen Thompson Imagine spending millions of dollars to come up with an amazing product, then cloaking it for invisibility. Perhaps the U.S. military can find good reason to do that, but for any company hoping to capture major...

Suddenly, rivals want to jump on Hulu bandwagon; Video site's success has HBO, Viacom wondering how they can win, too.(News)
October 13, 2008... Byline: MICHAEL LEARMONTH The studios' missteps on the web are legend. So when NBC Universal and News Corp. announced they were going to launch a video portal, it was easy to dismiss the effort, and many did. Then a funny thing...

Leading Hotels' tech trip-up: How online promo went wrong; Snafu caused by overwhelmed website underscores the risks marketers take in age of consumer control.(Digital)
October 13, 2008... Byline: RICH THOMASELLI It was an online promotion that went awry-and then the backup plan went haywire as well. But Marshall Calder, senior VP-marketing for New York-based hotel chain Leading Hotels of the World, is going to try...

Why it's no time to neglect cause efforts; P&G, others emphasize 'purpose branding' in midst of economic crisis.(News)(Procter & Gamble Co.)
October 13, 2008... Byline: NATALIE ZMUDA You might expect that cause marketing would be the kind of intangible, feel-good advertising to get axed in a recession. Instead, quite the opposite is true, as major marketers, from retailers such as Sears, Target...

17. Richard Gerstein; Chief marketing officer, Sears Holdings Corp.(Power Players)(Brief article)
October 13, 2008... AD BUDGET: $1.63 billion POWER PLAY: Richard Gerstein, Sears Holdings' newly minted CMO, presides over a $50 billion retail behemoth consisting of Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Kmart. The classic brands are embracing digital marketing and...

STARBUCKS' SURPRISE SUCCESS: OATMEAL; Women, millennials make new breakfast item into best-seller that could reinvent its category.(News)
October 13, 2008... Byline: EMILY BRYSON YORK Starbucks seems to have a slam-dunk new product: oatmeal. Yes, that mush your grandma pushed on you as a child is shaping up as the company's most successful food launch of all time. Within just a few...

This just in: All the meta-news that's fit to post; Can two media legends win over readers and marketers by making yet more media about media?(MediaWorks)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Simon Dumenco When i heard this spring that Barry Diller's InterActive Corp. was backing Tina Brown's bid to launch a new news-aggregation site, I thought, "This is gonna be fun.'' After all, Tina's old archnemesis, Michael...

'SNL' only one element of Sarah Palin microeconomy.(MediaWorks)
October 13, 2008... Byline: Rupal Parekh After seeing ratings dwindle for several seasons, "Saturday Night Live'' is back to being buzzworthy, and NBC has none other than Republican vice-presidential nominee and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to thank....