Bold: Modernista goes “siteless”

Marketnig Vox is reporting that Boston-based Modernista dismantled their site, and is going “web 2.0” with their new modernista.com destination. I think this has to be the gutsiest web strategy I’ve seen, specially when considering it’s from an ad agency. When users “Google” the agency and click on Modernista, they are brought to the same…

Hyundai Misses It: Campaign Geared To Hispanics

I just visited the new Hyundai Hispanic marketing website and was very disappointed. Not only was the site boring, but it took me 5 minutes to figure out the navigation — clever, but way to complicated. The site lacks visuals, of all things! I didn’t see a single picture of a shiny new Hyundai. The…

Live blogging the Super Bowl…commercials that is.

I’m not a football fan, but the commercials should be noteworthy. I’ll post some comments and reactions as the game goes on. While the actual game is going on, I’ll be doing some online shopping trying to figure out how to use all the birthday money I got today. [Most recent posts at the top…scroll…

Lessons in litigation and PR fallout

Stop the Presses blogged about the Johnson & Johnson lawsuit against the Red Cross, and the PR mess they are creating for themselves. The two most storied brands in pharmaceuticals and rescue & relief are going toe-to-toe. Johnson & Johnson and the Red Cross have peacefully shared the iconic red cross symbol for more than…

Delta & The Cost of Poor Customer Service

The following story illustrates the reality and cost of living in today’s Internet driven information age. The fact is that every business and organization out there cannot afford to forget that any given customer or stakeholder may just be the author of a blog with thousands of readers. Dean Barnett wrote a blog post titled,…

Branding through Behind the Scenes Video

I was uploading some behind the scenes video of a Republican presidential candidate, and was amazed at how a un-scripted casual video can make a huge positive difference in image building. Up to this point, I have not seen this particular candidate in a positive light. My impression has been that he is a typical…

WSJ: How Blogging Can Help You Get a New Job

I came across this article in today’s editor of the Wall Street Journal, and fortunately, its available for free on their online edition. I came across a posting about my current job opening on a blog I used to read on a regular basis (not as much these days…). I landed the job, in part,…

Logo Design just for fun

I have been experimenting with what is being called “web 2.0” design. I’m not really a graphic designer by trade, but being a web-guru requires a keen eye for design, usability, and branding. This one I did for a logo contest being run by Smashing Magazine. It doesn’t seem like my entry got to far,…

New-Media Solutions to PR Challenges

Today’s corporations have new channels through which to get their message out. Whether it is in response to a crisis or public criticism, or to proactively do brand messaging, the mainstream media channels are not the exclusive venue anymore. Case in point, conservative blogger Rob Bluey’s writes about Big Oil and their efforts to preempt…

JetBlue’s Customer Bill of Rights and use of YouTube

JetBlue just jumped to the head of the class! How do you make lemonade from lemons? JetBlue is leveraging a bad customer service moment — a real bad one — and using it to leverage a viral campaign to spread the message of their new Customter’s Bill of Right. They are using YouTube.com to distribute…

Online Video: “Experience” is key here

This is the power of video over the web. It gives you the ability to reach directly to your audience, leverage the power of viral marketing, and define how you or your business is perceived. “Experience” is key here, because you won’t get an understanding of his appeal from the print journalism caricature of telegenic…

Verizon Phone Sales: How not to do it.

I normally don’t like to rant and rip at a company for bad service. Because I do customer service work, I can understand how little things can go terribly wrong. But, today’s experience deserves a full blog post. Attention North Virginia Residents: Be warned. Verizon internet service may put you through hell in order to…