Newspaper Revenue Declines in 2008

TechCrunch recently posted an article stating that "Last year was the worst on record for the U.S. newspaper industry. Total advertising revenues (both print and online) declined 16.6 percent."

My first reaction to this news was sadness. More and more newspapers are closing their doors and good people are losing their jobs. But, I also thought about my last experience placing media with a major newspaper. Not only did they actually fall short of their contracted obligations, but they told us to pull our media dollars if we were not happy. Now, I understand that this scenario does not mirror the actions of all newspapers. But, given our current economic climate, what will the future bring to the newspaper industry?

- Chris

Revenue Opportunity?

I recently completed an integrated campaign that included display, email marketing, sponsorship, and print; to name a few. Working across these different channels, it became very clear just how behind the curve local radio stations are. In addition to working with their on-air talent to produce DJ chatter, they offered to create an online contest and allowed us to place display ads on certain sections of their website.

While they were on top of things to negotiate and produce the DJ chatter, the online portions were no doubt uncharted territory. Not only did their sales teams not understand the value of online, but by the time it came to place our creative, my general feeling was that they were figuring it out as they went.

It certainly seems like they are ignoring an untapped revenue stream. Am I the only one was has experienced this?

- Chris

Think Before You Tweet

Below is a wonderful reminder of how social media can get you.... well, fired. It seems that a would-be Cisco employee made a big mistake when he uploaded the following tweet:

"Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.”

For anyone who uses Facebook or Twitter, let this be a reminder to you. And, don't forget the cardinal rule of social media: never post anything that you wouldn't say to your significant other, boss, mother, etc.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29796962/

- Chris

Agencies as Content Producers

When most people think about the type of content advertising agencies produce, they think of Print, TV, Display, OOH and other mainstream media. For me, the longer agencies look at themselves as producers of this type of content, the shorter they will be around.

As I have posted before, consumers are now fully in control of the conversation. They are both the medium and the message. But, as a colleague recently asked me, what does this really mean? To me, it means that agencies need to step out of their comfort levels and begin finding ways to engage with consumers and have a meaningful dialogue. This will mean the creation of unique content that can be shared, discussed and used across multiple platforms.

Just like advertising agencies were forced to reorganize their operations to develop spots for television, it's time again for agencies to reorganize to be successful in the digital world. Smart phones, Web 2.0 features, social networking sites, and other new technologies have completely changed the way consumers consume media. Agencies must address these changes and retool to produce content that fits into the lives of this digital consumer.

Thoughts?

- Chris

Way Too Cool 50k - In The Books

For a second year in a row, Pia, Greg and I hit the trails around Cool, CA for their annual "Way too Cool 50K" ultra trail marathon. Once again, this race didn't disappoint. The day started with perfect race conditions; temps in the 50's with a slight breeze. The trails were in decent condition, with only a few of the creeks overflowing. Even after months of training on Mt. Tam, this course was still much more technical than I was used to.

Pia and I at Mile 7

This year, I consider the race to have been a great "adventure." I felt great the entire day, executed my hydration and nutrition plan perfectly and enjoyed every moment of the day. Making it even better, I was able to run the first 15 miles with Pia. But, the day was not without its difficulties. To start, I took a hard fall around mile 8 while trying to take a technical downhill section a little too fast. I tripped, rolled and did some damage to my knee, hip and elbow. I laughed it off, kept going and was able to get back into the groove without any problems. Then, at mile 24, I took a wrong turn at a section that was poorly marked.

It didn't take me long to realize that I had taken a wrong turn. Knowing my finishing time was no longer relevant, I kept my pace and just enjoyed the trails I was running on. No stress, no pressure. After running by myself for about an hour, (I was on a lower trail that paralleled the course), I was able to find other runners and re-join the race at mile 28. In the end, I finished in 5:01:xx, with a total distance of around 32-33 miles (my Garmin said 32.8). I was bummed to have gone off-course, but knew that the extra mile or so would help me in my 50 mile trail run in Lake Tahoe this July.

I'll be back for more next year.

Happy to be finished.

Another Great Use of Twitter

It constantly amazes me that people in this industry don't understand the power of Twitter. Is it that they don't understand how it works? Or, have they never seen it applied in the right way for a brand?

To help a few of you out, I will give you an example of a great use of Twitter. Yes, I could always tell you about how Dell has used Twitter to sell over $1 million dollars in computers. But, that wouldn't be relevant to those of you in the industry. So, instead, I will tell you about how Critical Mass is effectively using Twitter. For any company, trying to find good talent (not just a body to fill a chair) can be both difficult and expensive. Critical Mass is putting a new spin on recruiting through the use of @venterchris. His tweets are friendly, conversational and go a long way towards putting a good face on the Critical Mass brand. By using Twitter, they have taken the typically dry world of HR and put a new spin on it.

Thoughts?

- Chris

Update: Skittles Tweets The Rainbow

After an overload of profanity-laced tweets on their homepage, Skittles has slightly changed their direction. Instead of a Twitter feed, users are now dropped directly into their MySpace page.

Honestly, I can't really say that I blame them. The profanity that dominated their homepage was ugly, mean-spirited and made me nervous as a marketer.

Despite the changes, I am still a fan of this initiative. Skittles made a bold move, brought the brand more media exposure than they have received in years, and I believe it will pay off in the end as more and more content is added to the experience. The recent integration of the videos were a nice addition and I can finally say that I have a better idea of what their brand is all about. And, as I predicted in my original post, the tweets have become less vulgar and are now more "friendly"... well, almost. The trolls and haters have moved on and the conversation is beginning to swing back.

Thoughts?

- Chris

Communicating in a Digital World

It seems like everyone these days is trying to find new ways to have a dialogue with consumers. Companies are creating Facebook pages, using blogs and posting videos on YouTube for the world to see. The explosion of social media has completely changed the game and the days of 1-1 communication should be over.

As Joseph Jaffe put it, "Consumers today are active participants in the advertising process, not silent targets and sitting ducks for one-way communication. Forget about the medium being message; today, consumers are both the medium and the message."

But, here is my question.... why are so many agencies giving this "new" way of communicating just lip service? I hear far too many agencies talk about how they consider digital to be core to their offering. But, do they really understand what that means? Do they understand how to provide consumers with the tools to engage and have a conversation with a brand? I doubt it. The plethora of TV, Radio, Print and Display Campaigns that look the same and contain the same messaging, but provide no tools to enable consumer dialogue only strengthen this point.

So, why is this? Are agencies too afraid to break from their models of producing campaigns? Do they even get the joke?

Thoughts?

- Chris

Skittles Tweets the Rainbow

WOW... Skittles has taken a big and bold step into the social media space. Realizing that they can no longer ignore the power of Social Media, Skittles has replaced its homepage with a Twitter stream. More than that, they easily linked users to their Facebook page to view Friends, Flickr to view pics, MySpace for videos and Wikipedia for product information; content that is primarily user generated.

While I feel the module they created for the navigation is far too big and may be confusing for some users, I love what Skittles is doing. Yes, they are already experiencing users tweeting negative comments about the brand, but I feel the upside is far greater than the downside.

First, Why It's a FAIL:
1. Skittles really should have thought about using a filter called JustSignal. By using JustSignal, they could have easily reviewed the Twitter stream before pushing the tweets to the public. I am very curious why Agency.com decided not to use this, or another service. I have my suspicions (i.e., cost associated with 24/7 review), but would love to know the true rationale.

2. I can't imagine the conversations that are going on between the agency and the CMO. The sheer number of negative and derogatory comments is overwhelming. This could have been easily avoided.

Now, Why I Love It:
1. Yeah, yeah, yeah.... it's been done before, but as an early adopter in the social media space, Skittles will garner more media coverage, press, PR and buzz than they ever could have with a traditional media push. And, probably did it at a fraction of the cost. I wonder how many people went to Skittles.com today for the first time because of this effort. I know I did.

2. Once all this attention dies down, the conversation will turn back towards Skittles; versus the off-topic conversation that is being tweeted about now.

3. Finally, a reason for consumers to go back to their website.

What does everyone else think?

- Chris