Maybe it is not the economy...

After 10 years, Pepsi-Cola Co. is splitting with soccer star David Beckham in what was described as a mutual parting. But the decision to walk away from Mr. Beckham, coming on the heels of a disappointing, injury-riddled stateside debut season with Major League Soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy, raises questions over whether the soccer celeb's marketability is fading along with his footwork. Since he inked a deal with Major League Soccer in 2007 that could be worth as much as $250 million over five years, Mr. Beckham has also parted with Gillette. He has global deals with Adidas and Motorola; the latter pact expires in June. See full story at http://AdAge.com

Are Beckham's 15 minutes of fame over? What major sports and entertainment marketing figure is next?

The gift that keeps on giving...A Suggie?

When I first saw this ad I thought what a cute and sort of clever idea...the second half of this ad I began to wonder if this a SNL commercial. So if you need to make this a December to remember then buy that special person a Snuggie.

Click here to see what I mean

I would love to see this companies profit and loss statement after this holiday season.

Has another bubble burst?*

The NFL is having problems...


And so is my beloved marketing geniuses Nascar...




And to top it off...

Can you drive really fast around tight corners? Do you lose your temper and burst into tears when other drivers cut in front of you? If you answered yes to both questions, NASCAR might want to hear from you.


The motor racing sport could do with more exciting, emotive personalities, NASCAR Chief Executive Brian France told reporters at the Reuters Media Summit in New York. Read More



I really hope they do not take the direction France wants them to go, besides they became a big business because of the ability to relate to the fans, having emotional drivers will make sports center but they are already on it for being good people. The last thing we need is hot headed morons driving 200 miles per hour. And with sponsors pulling out now, can you imagine how fast they will be pulling out if they do go this direction.


Which leads me to my next point, do you think the golden age of sports marketing is coming to an end? How viable of a vehicle is sports marketing especially when more and more companies are starting to spend less and less in sponsorship? Is it because of a lack of return on investment?

Sure we are talking about it...*

Will this make you want to switch from McD's, Wendy's or where ever to the Whopper? What kind of return on investment could BK expect from this? Is it worth the implicit and explicit costs of running the ad?

Selling The Sizzle Not The Steak

The roller-coaster stock market and plunging housing prices have left many consumers afraid. In response, marketers are adopting a softer approach to peddling their products, playing up comforting images in their ads and focusing on family and the warmth and safety of home.
Some marketers are even reviving old advertising to remind consumers of happier times.

Click here to read the article

I like how the article points out how brands are trying to become more soothing. I find it funny that in "hard times" brands and businesses go away from the greedy sales approach while moving to more of a marketing oriented approach in their message. Shouldn't it have been this way all along? It has been for Nordstrom's, Sun Country, etc... What are some examples, other than what was mentioned in the article. you can think of where companies are changing their message trying to create a "softer approach" to their customers wallet?

Would you rather...*

iPhone in Walmart???

That is correct, after this holiday season AT&T iPhones will begin being sold at Walmart. Click here to read the entire story. This move by iPhone makes me wonder...Will the iPhone brand lose its impressive status now that it is sold at Walmarts or will become stronger? Which is better sell your phone at Walmart or sell your phone through all other wireless communications providers such as Verizon and Sprint? Finally by going to a more intensive distribution model is the writing on the "wal" for the iPhone, haven't we seen this before?

Super Bowl Sneak Peak

Want to see who is going to be in the Super Bowl click here

Do you believe Brian Williams?

If you are into technology then you have to watch this!!

Who Could Ever Think This Is A Good Idea???

Click here to see what I mean...I do not even know where to start on this one.

A "Purple Cow" Sighting

Have you heard the one about the woman in California who is unemployed and frustrated with her job search so she purchases iron on decals and puts her cover letter and resume on her shirt?

Kelly Kinney did just this when she saw a guy in line with a T-shirt and thought, ‘People pay attention to things they read on T-shirts,'" Kinnney said. She turned her resume and cover letter into two iron-ons that she put on a white T-shirt. "I'm in marketing. I have to do anything I can to get noticed," she said.

I have a hard time seeing her getting a dream job using this approach, but I have to give her credit getting the attention of others. Do you think others will follow her lead? What is too far? Will possible future employers even take her seriously when they stand behind her at the grocery store or any other line that she is?

Read the full article and share your thoughts.

http://www.the-signal.com/news/article/6526/

A more competitive product or a slimmed down product mix?

GM is considering cutting Pontiac, Saturn and Saab in order to save money? Begs the question – when companies merge what benefit is there in having more than one vehicle that are similar within the same company?

Example:

Chevrolet Traverse / Satrun Outlook / GMC Acadia / Buick Enclave – all four are crossovers and have virtually the same features are built on the same chassis – so why make four versions of the same thing? Why not just one model with all the different levels of features?

Owning the holidays

MACY's 2008 windows shows how even if the consumer is going to spend less, just get them to come to your store which in return will allow you to get them to spend. I am suprised that more stores do not do this. Although Target is going to own downtown Minneapolis this winter with the Holidazzle Parade. What retailers do you think need to take this type of approach? What should they try to own?

TIger and Buick = No More

General Motors Corp. is ending its relationship with its most visible endorser, golf superstar Tiger Woods, citing the difficult economy as well as Mr. Woods' desire for more family time as he and his wife prepare for the birth of their second child. The automaker had a nine-year relationship with Mr. Woods, arguably the biggest sports endorser in the world. Mr. Woods made several commercials on behalf of GM products and also played as often as he could in the Buick Open tournament each season in Grand Blanc, Mich.

Beyond this, it has been noted that since Tiger became the spokesperson for GM the average age of customers buying Buicks dropped 10 years in the short period that he has endorsed them.

If the GM is truly hurting why would they drop a celebrity such as Tiger who stands for performance, quality and status. Isn't this what every type of car dreams to be?

In my opinion just another poor decision for a very complacent, status quo company / industru

Michael Phelps and Subway...huh?

Below is an article regarding Michael Phelps and a new sponsorship / endorsement. Do you think Subways campaign will be a success or failure? I think they have a major credibilty issue since Phelps pronounced his love for McD's in August. Let me know what you think.

---------------------------------------

If there was one thing Americans learned about Michael Phelps during his history-making eight-gold-medal run at the Beijing Olympics -- other than that he can swim really, really fast -- it was that he really, really likes McDonald's.

With the Phelps deal, Subway intends to use one of McDonald's most famous admirers to steal its market share.

At a press event before the games, the in-training Olympian revealed he'd been on a double-cheeseburger kick. Newspapers all over the world noted his Arches-fueled 10,000-calorie-a-day diet. Then, in an interview with CNBC, his agent, Peter Carlisle, said: "If there's one deal [he's wanted], he's always said it'd be McDonald's. ... The truth of the matter is you can't stop the guy from eating the food." So, how, then, did Mr. Phelps wind up signing a major, long-term endorsement deal for Subway, one of McDonald's fiercest and fastest-growing rivals? It makes about as much sense as Nike's Michael Jordan professing a love for Reebok. Mr. Carlisle begs to differ. "The difference is that Michael Jordan only played in one brand of shoes, while Michael [Phelps] has consistently been forthcoming about his love for a variety of different foods and a variety of different quick-service restaurants," he said. "There was tremendous interest in that category well beyond McDonald's and Subway." 'More of a partnership'Subway prevailed, Mr. Carlisle said, because it offered "more of a partnership and less of an Olympic program," and also because its fast-growing presence and ambitions in Europe and the U.K. dovetail with Mr. Phelps' own ambitions to promote the sport of swimming in advance of the 2012 London games.

Also a factor, Mr. Carlisle said, was the Subway brand's more-healthful image. While Mr. Phelps could have "easily" done a deal with McDonald's that focused on its more-healthful offerings, Mr. Carlisle said, "there are differences between the brands [regarding perceptions of healthfulness], and they were taken into consideration." Those considerations appear to have become more pronounced after Mr. Phelps was criticized following a major deal with Kellogg that put his face on Frosted Flakes boxes. (Wrote MarketWatch: "Suddenly a newly minted celebrity had betrayed America's impressionable and overweight kids, who will doubtless now line up at the local Wal-Mart to buy pallet-loads of sugary non-fibrous crud.") Mr. Phelps may have been reluctant to take on the similar barrage that inevitably would have accompanied any McDonald's deal, though Mr. Carlisle said that was not a factor in his decision.

Whatever the reason, Subway now intends to use one of McDonald's most famous admirers to steal its market share. "McDonald's is Goliath, and we're David," said Tony Pace, chief marketing officer for the Subway Advertising Fund Trust. "Fortunately I have a pretty good slingshot." Mr. Pace said he expects ads starring Mr. Phelps to subtly refer to the swimmer's well-known burger habit. Mr. Pace said he could forsee a commercial with pitchman Jared Fogle and Mr. Phelps together, one with a healthful foot-long and the other with several foot-long sandwiches. "And Michael might say, 'I need to eat more than you do, Jared,' and Jared could say, 'But at least I've got you eating right.'" A McDonald's spokeswoman declined to comment on the extent of its attempt to strike a deal with Mr. Phelps. In a statement, she said: "We enjoyed a very positive working relationship with Michael, particularly at the Summer Games in Beijing. As a top Olympics sponsor, we wish Michael and all the Olympics athletes the best in their future endeavors."

The "BEG" Three

I have a real hard time believing that we need to save the automobile industry. First, would you go to a bank and ask for a loan but not have a dollar amount rather say it is substantial? Second when you go to a bank for a loan would you spend $20K for your trip to the bank instead of paying a much lower amount which gets you there just as conveniently?

Here is my two cents on what should happen. First of all the automotive industry should not be bailed out. This will do two things 1. It will bust the union which will ultimately shift the supply curve to the right for the BEG three. Second it will force the BEG's to develop a more competitive product. Sure there will be job losses from suppliers but that will only make them create a more competitive product. As for the union, it needs to be broke and the union members need to find a way to make them more competitive instead of being complacent and inefficient. I never wish anyone the fortune of being laid off but if you are you need to realize there is no difference between selling brake pads and selling your self to a potential employer. I agree Unions in the past were good but now in this economy do nothing but protect the weak and hurt business practices...think about is Wal-Mart asking for a bail out?

Finally another note, why did (the US Government) act so quick on the banking industry? Even with the bail out they are still failing with stock falling 20 some percent yesterday.Shouldn't they be required to make a more competitive product?