What amazing opportunities the Internet has brought to us!  The world is a much smaller place because of technological advances.  Air travel allows any person with the means the ability to physically be in almost any place in the world in less than 24 hours.  Breaking news that is happening in Indonesia can be experienced by someone who’s online in Alaska.  The television and telephone are no longer needed to stay informed and in touch.

Last winter, I had a friend who was dating a guy who lived in South Africa.  She lived in Denver, Colorado.  During our conversations, she told me that they would Skype each other every few nights.  “What’s Skype?” I wondered.

Founded in 2003, Skype is revolutionizing the way people communicate around the world. Every day, millions of people use Skype to communicate for free through voice and video calls as well as instant messages. Many people also use Skype to call landline and mobiles with pay as you go Skype Credit or a monthly subscription. – Skype.com

Cool!  It’s free and you can speak face to face with friends and families.  Well, you do have to have a webcam.  Last week, another friend who is dating her boyfriend long-distance told me that they Skype every few nights in order to keep up their relationship.  Well, I’m interested.  I just downloaded Skype.  Currently, I need to invite some friends from away, so that it makes more sense for me to use it.

But, the initial test is interesting.  I really wondered how it worked without a phone.  Well, with my recent-model Windows Vista compatible laptop, I didn’t have to worry.  I simply utilized Skype’s intial microphone test, and Voila!  I’m a Skype user.  I knew that I had a webcam, but I had no idea that I had a microphone so I could use my computer as a phone!  Sometimes, you don’t know what you have until you try it!

Skype has pretty phenomenal IMC implications.  I was watching Oprah one day, and she was interviewing the star of Slum Dog Millionaire, before the Oscars, using Skype.  Since Skype is becoming so very hip and mainstream, more people will be able to talk about things, and show off things more quickly.  Buzz can be created in a whole new way!

Since the most basic aspects of Skype are free, infrastructure costs can be reduced.  We can have face-to-face discussions with colleagues near and far, with it.  I’m going to keep my options open with this program, because it’s so new to me.

In the meantime, I can’t wait to get my mom on Skype!  I’ll hold my new puppy in my lap so she can see her, and we can chat online for hours about inane things – for free!

In 2007, it was estimated that minorities made up 34 percent of the United States population.  This is an increase of 11 percent from 2000.  And it’s expected that “minorities” will become the majority, making up more than 50 percent of the US population by 2042.

This means that marketers will really need to be able to speak to different audiences in different ways.  Currently, most Hispanics populate California, Texas, New Mexico, and Florida.  The East Coast, the South, and Michigan and Illinois have the largest population of Blacks.  Most Asians live in Hawaii, the West Coast, and New York, New Jersey, Texas and Illinois.  Different regions obviously are made up of different ethinicities, which include various demographics, and pyschographics.

But that’s not really very different from what marketers have to deal with on a normal basis.  Marketers must identify the audience that they intend to speak to, that audience’s motivations, and the best ways to reach that audience.  It really doesn’t matter if that audience is White, Black, or other.  The message must be designed to appropriately reach that group.  The Orlando Business Journal states that when marketing to minorities, “The most important ideal is to consider all the possible cultural nuances within your target audience.”

Which sounds like common sense, right?  The problem comes from being aware of what those cultural nuances are.  For example, second and third generation Hispanics speak English, not just Spanish.  They want to be marketed to with “Spanglish.”  And just as marketers would not target three year-old and sixty year-old Whites in the same group, marketers must speak to divergent parts of minority groups, too.

The Orlando Business Journal gives a few tips regarding marketing to minorities:

• Don’t overgeneralize a population. Choose your target audience very carefully, and cater to them specifically. For example, you cannot just target the Hispanic market, as there are many demographics within it. There are also different languages and customs within those.
• Do talk to an expert, especially if your advertisements will be translated into different languages. Different phrases, pictures or even colors might mean something completely different to your target audience.
• Don’t follow the model of your competition. The key to success in any small business niche is to set yourself apart from the leading brand or chain.
• Do develop a database of your customers. By tracking your customer’s information, you will be able to target your consumer audience even more specifically.
• Do get involved in the community. Many groups hold events that a wise business should become involved in to spread its name throughout that particular community.

So speak to your audience.  Make sure the message is appropriate for that group.  Make each person feel like you’re speaking to them, and make sure you get the cultural references right!

April 23, 1859 – Feb. 27, 2009

Today was the final publication of the Rocky Mountain News.  Yesterday, I received in my email inbox at work, an announcement from our marketing director telling us that the Rocky Mountain News would be closed tomorrow.  I was shocked.  I knew that the newspaper had been for sale since late last year, but it was still surprising that a nearly 150 year-old institution was finished.

Final Edition from Matthew Roberts on Vimeo.

The newspaper was actually older than the state of Colorado.  Ultimately, though, the Denver region could not support two newspapers.  The Rocky Mountain News was owned by the E.W. Scripps Company.  Over the past year, Scripps lost $16 million with the Rocky Mountain News, and other Colorado investments.   Despite having to make the choice to kill the Rocky Mountain News, Scripps news business will continue.  Scripps CEO Rich Boehne said, “Scripps has been around for 130 years. We intend to be around another 130 years.  If you can’t make hard decisions, you won’t make it.”

That didn’t make it any easier for Rocky staffers, when they heard the news.  Many tears were shed when the announcement was made.  Both staffers and readers took a very proprietary perspective on the newspaper, referring to it as “My Rocky.”  The Rocky Mountain News was a winner of four Pulitzer Prizes in recent years, and it’s photography has been consistently top-rated.

But America is in the middle of an economic recession.  And the world of newspapers is changing.  Circulation is down, advertising – especially classified – is extremely low.  But the Rocky’s editor, John Temple, said that Denver simply couldn’t support two newspapers.  The Denver Post, the surviving newspaper, isn’t any more financially stable than the Rocky.  Scripps simply decided that even if there were one newspaper in Denver, it would still be a money-losing venture.  The Post and the Rocky entered into a Joint Operating Agreement in 2002.  Subscription rates for both papers were low, so with the JOA,  both papers tried to raise advertising rates, to the protest of businesses.  Circulation began to decline, and the papers cannibalized themselves in order to preserve low subscription rates.  Thus, the end of the two-newspaper city.

So the future of newspapers remains uncertain.  The demise of the Rocky Mountain News is simply one example.  But an altered newspaper world is happening around the country.  The only thing that remains certain about newspapers is that they will have to change, considerably, in order to survive.

Nationally, unemployment was calculated at 7.6 percent for January 2009.  That’s 11.6 million Americans without a job – 598,000 more people than in December 2008.  Those are scary statistics.  This is a frightening time for businesses and individuals alike.  People have less money, so they’re spending less money.  Businesses need to tighten their purse strings, and spend less money in order to remain viable.  We see that every day.  In the news, we read about those thousands who are losing their jobs.  Our friends and colleagues are getting laid off.  We wonder when we might be next.

But, businesses do need to stay focused on their customers.  Many marketing budgets will be lowered, some will stay the same, and a few will actually be increased.  For all of these situations, it’s vital for companies to take care of their customers.  Nancy Shaver, an insight strategist for Experian Marketing Services, echoes this theory.  Marketers must figure out what their customers want and expect more than ever before.  It’s important to focus on existing customers, since it’s cheaper and easier to maintain those prospects than acquire new customers.  Of those existing customers, each segment must be targeted specifically.  It’s not enough in this recession economy to send a generic message to everyone.  Each person must feel like they are being directly spoken to.

The Town of Breckenridge, Colorado, saw the wisdom of investing additional money into marketing.  By pumping a quarter of a million dollars into marketing efforts, Breckenridge was able to turn a projected 14 – 25 percent lodging decline into only an 8-12 percent drop.  Most of that money was spent marketing to guests specifically from Dallas and Chicago.  “…we ended up as we said our goals were — to make occupancy drop only half as bad as they appeared at the end of November,” said John McMahon, executive director of the Breckenridge Resort Chamber.

Early on, this type of strategy might work, the future will show if it continues.  However, if people don’t have jobs, and don’t have money, all the marketing dollars, and care in the world might not be enough.

Americans ignore commercials.  We hang up on telemarketers.  Print advertisements are quickly scimmed over.  Emailed newsletters and advertisements are deleted.  So, as marketers, how do we creatively reach prospects?

Well, for one thing, everyone likes to be entertained, and we like a good story.  We watch sitcoms, rent movies, and flock to theaters.  Luckily marketers have tapped into that market, utilizing product placements.  But, more can be done.

Short films have been around since the advent of movies in the early 1910′s.  They’ve been winning Oscar‘s since the 1930′s.  The winner of the best live action short film of the 81st Academy Awards was Spielziegleund (Toyland), a story about a 1942 German boy who believes his Jewish neighbors are going to toyland.  Most likely, this film doesn’t mean much to you, or to me, for that matter.  However, film manufacturers believe that short films are making a comeback, with the popularity of programs like YouTube.  These short films will first reach the 18-22 year-old demographic, because they understand and engage with the medium, younger and older audiences will quickly follow.

If film makers believe that this age group will effectively embrace short films on Web 2.0, marketers should pay attention.  Utlizing short films for marketing is a way to step outside of the mainstream media in order to differentiate themselves from traditional marketing methods.

  The Ritz-Carlton teamed up with American Express to produce a series of short advertising films.  “Last Night” is the second in the series.  It’s a slightly risque story that ends up humorous.  It resonates with a younger audience, which is what Ritz-Carlton was aiming for.  The film series won an Adrian Platinum award from the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association.

What a great way to talk to an audience.  Entertain them with a story, then remind them of the product.  It’s like product placement on steroids. Placing the film on YouTube, on the company’s website, and sending out press releases to logical print publications, viewers can learn about these films.  Marketers should use the title “short film” correctly, however.  A short film, according to IMC professor, Rachael Post,

• There’s a focus – it get’s to the point;
• It’s original;
• It’s simple, involving a single incident from the beginning to the end;
• There’s a subtle or overt conflict;
• It looks like a film, not an ad;
• It follows a three-act structure – beginning, middle, and end

Don’t just throw up video on a website and call it a short film.  There is a history of short films.  Anything other than a short film may still be effective marketing.  Documentaries are valid.  Advertisements that follow a campaign are great.  Just don’t call them short films, because they’re not.

The statistics are out there.  More than one billion cell phone users also utilize text messaging, for personal and marketing purposes.  What do you think about that?

I think, please don’t send me texts.  I have to pay for them.  They’re annoying.  But… if I subscribe to a mobile alert, I guess it’s okay.  That must mean I want it!

There are a few ways for marketers to responsibly utilize mobile alerts.  Motricity’s CEO Ryan Weurch has a few hints.

• Identify the goal:  Why are you sending out messages?  Is it for brand building?  Customer acquisition or relationship management?  E-commerce?  Whatever you do, experiment.
• Develop the product:  Make your mobile marketing unique, don’t copy everything that already exists.
• Think of the customer:  Make your mobile design and layout user friendly.

Mobile marketing has proven that it is successful.  Recently, the most successful and popular mobile campaign was part of Barack Obama’s campaign for the presidency.  He’s a President that embraces new technology.  Mobile marketing has been called an immediate call to action, and many say that it’s a very personal way to communicate.

Companies like Jiffy Lube are offering free oil changes for year to customers who subscribe to mobile marketing.  Cold Stone Creamery ran a holiday promotion, encouraging customers to text “CREAM” in order to receive in-store coupons.   A great observation was made by Ping’s client services manager Isaac Noor,

“When marketing to consumers in California, one is typically engaging ‘Green-minded’ and ‘tech-savvy’ individuals.  As such, it is critical for brands to align themselves with an environmentally friendly image, while simultaneously providing the convenience offered by the mobile channel.”

“Green-minded” and “tech-savvy” individuals aren’t just limited to California.  Being environmentally conscious is something that a much greater part of the population is concerned about.  You can see it with the greater pushes towards recycling, and “green” products.

Maybe mobile marketing is a good thing after all.  It’s just important that it’s an opt-in message.  Please.  Don’t “cold” text me!

Five days ago I had to reload Windows Vista to its factory settings.  Wonderful.  I was on a deadline, trying to complete my discussion question for week five, when I took a 10 minute break for a quick dinner.  Once I returned to my computer, I was no longer able to connect to the Internet.  Not through Firefox or through MSN.  I checked all of my wired connections – I was plugged in.  I restarted the computer – a bluescreen appeared.

I started to panic.  The next-to-the-last thing that I wanted to have happen was to lose all of my files, settings, and downloads from the last three months.  Luckily I’ve backed up my files onto an external drive, but there’s always something that goes astray during this type of crash.  Unfortunately, I had to do what I dreaded most – call the “oh-so-helpful” (note sarcasm) Dell tech support team that is most likely located in India.  I do have the extended warranty, but that doesn’t mean a thing.  Dell wants you to purchase the optional tech support that connects you to a North American-based service tech team within two minutes.  All for a mere $200 or so per year.

So I embarked on the one-hour long plus telephone journey with my Indian Dell tech.  The gist was that my computer had a fatal Vista error that could be restored by resetting everything to the factory settings.  I was transferred to a customer service agent, who I expressed my displeasure to.  I told him that I’d never buy a Dell again, as this was the third time in the three months I’ve owned this computer that this has happened to me.  Then I hung up and “erased” all of the errors.

Luckily, everything is up and running again, but the problems are beginning to feel like more than a minor inconvenience.  It’s entirely too bad that Windows Vista is so unreliable, because the idea of it is fantastic.  When it works, it works very well- and it’s pretty easy.  Microsoft has started to use a new slogan – Windows:  Life Without Walls.

It’s really quite catchy, and it makes a lot of sense.  Microsoft says, “Where you connect to a global community of more than a billion people and nothing comes between you and a world of ideas and opportunities. With Windows on your mobile phone, PC, or the Web, walls begin to disappear—at home, at the office, and anywhere in between. You can balance work and life as well as fun and functionality. And with a wide range of software, services, and devices to choose from, your technology can be as unique as you are.”

Windows is educating users on how its operating system can make life easier.  Hopefully, the next Windows OS will be more reliable for users, new and old.  As for me, I’m 99 percent sure my next computer will be a Mac.

I love email!  At work, my email is constantly up in the background.  I love watching a new message appear in my inbox.  It’s instant communication – and it’s a filing system.    I can refer to my sent emails to verify that I did, in fact, send that notice on Jan. 14 at 2:14 p.m.  I have an email filing system so that I can check back on things.

I check my personal email about three times a day.

However, I hate my personal account anymore.  I have subscribed to so many newsletters that most of what I receive in my inbox is junk.  I “select all” and hit delete, daily.  One of my favorite things that I get in my email is my “group” and Facebook updates.

I firmly believe that email is a great marketing tool.  I build relationships with it.  I work for a ski and snowboard school at a mountain resort in Colorado.  We have a few multi-week lesson programs.  Parents love to know what’s going on.  So, I send out weekly email updates reminding them of the start time, weather forecast, upcoming events, registration deadlines, and more.  It’s a quick, easy, and cheap way to make our customers feel valued.  I think it’s important to make these types of emails valuable.  I never send them out more than once a week.  Otherwise, they become stale and recipients don’t pay any attention to them.

That’s part of the problem that I have with all of the “junk” that arrives in my personal mailbox.  I’m sure that much of it is valuable, but there’s just too much.

In our first IMC course, we all studied Clif Bar.  I subscribed to its email newsletter.  It took several weeks in order to receive the first email.  At the time, I didn’t think that was effective.  I felt that it didn’t keep the product top-of-mind.  However, as the IMC program has continued, it’s very refreshing that emails from Clif Bar only arrive every month or so.  When the email arrives, I actually read it, rather than simply hit delete.

If done correctly, enewsletters are a fantastic tool.  Its an inexpensive, fun way to connect with customers or guests.

I’ve been told that having children is the most magical thing that can happen to a person.  That your entire worldview changes once a screaming bundle of joy is relying on you for everything.  I can believe that.  It must be an amazing feeling to see a miniature version of yourself smiling up at you, or screaming at you!

Businesses know this.  They understand the iron-clad bond that develops between a parent and their child.  They know that parents will do almost anything they can to make their children happy.  What a gold mine!  Marketers can capitalize on this bond and help to boost their company’s sales.  Marketers speak to children who convince their parents to purchase something.

Disney is a fantastic example of a company that understands how to send effective message to kids.  Take the Disney website, disney.com.  Disney has such a wide range of characters and products, that it appeals to kids of all ages.  The website features everything Disney.  Disney begins recruiting it’s customers from a very early age.  Disney-themed clothes, and toys are purchased for babies.  Once kids are at an age where they can use a computer, 2 years and up, Disney’s website  offers games and activities for kids and their parents.  The genius behind the Disney website is that all ages can catch a glimpse, and then explore more in depth, all of Disney’s offerings.  A five year-old girl will convince her parents that she needs a Disney princess.  A few years later she might insist that they visit Cinderella’s Castle.  And of course, she’s smitten with Pirates of the Carribean, High School Musical, or whatever the latest Disney craze is, and she owns hem on Blue Ray, as well as all of the Disney Classics movies.

This fictional girl will be successful in getting what she wants more than half of the time.  She may have to ask nine times, but more than likely, her parents will give in to what she wants, according to the New American Dream.  The “Nag Factor” is a boon to marketers.  As is Web 2.0.  Kids are so inundated with electronic media messages, that it’s estimated that they are exposed to 8.5 hours worth of media in a 6.5 hour period, seven days a week.

The question comes up fairly often.  Are messages ethically marketed to children?  Sometimes, yes, sometimes no.  If children are exposed to that many media messages in so short a period of time, then the doting parents should step in and monitor some of the activities their kids are participating in.

Blogs.  They’re an easy way to share your thoughts with the world.  Many are free.  Blogs allow people to be amateur reporters, diarists,  and “experts” on all sorts of subjects.  Blogs are a very popular way for people to communicate.  Companies can use blogs to add transparency.   Blog readers can become a part of  a community, commenting and adding personal experiences and opinions to posts.  They add credibility to a company.  Bloggers can also share their expertise with the world.

We do need to pay attention to the Blog Effect.  According to Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008, blogs are here to stay.  Stats vary, but there are at least 77 million blog users, 41 million Facebook users, 75 million MySpace users, and 77 percent of active Internet users read blogs.  Those are pretty staggering statistics.  Blog audiences are reading about anything they want – from politics to celebrity gossip, from movies to news, from cooking to travel, from automobiles to computer gadgets.

213,034,436 people have visited the Post Secret blog, an “ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard.”  This site is a great example of a site that people visit because of the buzz that surrounds it.  It’s an interesting site where provocative, yet inane statements are posted.  It allows people to be brave, and others to voyareustically peer into the thoughts of strangers.  An interesting concept.  People are given the freedom to be transparent.

Corporate transparency is important with blogs, too.  More than four out of five bloggers post product or brand reviews.  Marketers, are you paying attention now?  Blogging can be considered one way that the Web 2.0 is “word of mouth” advertising.  People talk about what they love, people talk about what they hate.  It’s a little bit narcissistic, but it’s happening.  These bloggers are a great resource to approach to become brand advocates.  Again, if they’re talking, people will listen.

Technorati says that blogs are being taken much more seriously now than they ever have in the past.  There’s a belief among devoted web users that print is dying.  Blogs are valid and will become more mainstream in the next five years.  I still believe in newspapers.  I’m much slower to believe in blogs.  Statistics support the bloggers, but let’s hope that we can still thumb through our newsprint in ten years.