Archive for the ‘Research’ Category

In arguably the most useless (and obvious) research ever, social media experts have quantified that cleavage sells stuff.

That’s why it’s no surprise that cleavage thievage has increased dramatically (not proven by research).

Case in point. An online ad in the Coloradoan stole (ya, I said it) a photo taken three years ago at ad:tech San Francisco.

Happens all the time, right? So how are we connected to this story? Our senior copywriter broke the news to the fine folks over at adrants. Turns out that the woman’s strategically placed name badge — which was accentuated by her profitable cleavage — was just the type of picture nefarious ad makers covet. Read the adrants article here

Just goes to show that despite tremendous increase in ad response rates, we need to keep our cleavage to ourselves — otherwise it might get stolen.

A recent study profiled on Marketing Charts shows that promotional e-mails that include links to social networking sites produce an average of 30-percent higher click-through rates (CTR) than promotional e-mails without links. And don’t think one is enough — research also shows that the more social network links you have, the higher CTR you receive.

Most popular links:

Twitter,
Facebook

Least popular:

Digg

So when it doubt, be social… very social.

E-mail, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Gmail — usernames and passwords galore. What happens to these accounts when the owner dies? According to a recent list on Time, here are your answers:

Hotmail and Gmail allow relatives to order a CD with the deceased user’s messages if they can provide a death certificate and proof of power of attorney.

Facebook will take down the deceased user’s profile or keep it in “memorial state.”

Flickr keeps the account up, but if the user had any private photos, the site won’t let family or friends access to them.

Legacy Locker, and other similar companies, can store passwords and other account information for designated individuals after the user dies.

Should we start accounting for our online life in our wills?

Next time you purchase an “all natural,” “organic,” or “green” item, you may want to think twice about what you’re really buying. According to research by TerraChoice Environmental Marketing, 98-percent of products that advertise their “greenness” are bending the truth.

And a growing trend is to imply third-party endorsements — whether they’re real or not. Adopting fake labels is now the newest sin of greenwashing. And cosmetics, cleaning products, toys, and baby products are the top offenders in this area.

For an eye-opening look at greenwashing — and a sampling of the legitimate eco-labels available — download Greenwashing Report 2009.

“Green” products are seemingly everywhere these days. Marketers riding the green wave are flooding us with messages about environmental-friendly this and natural, sustainable that. We’re surrounded by so many environmental claims that people are experiencing eco-anxiety as they try to figure out how to truly green their lives. How do you avoid greenwashing — misleading claims about the environmental benefits of a product or service — and make educated choices? Watch out for “The Six Sins of Greenwashing”" as defined by TerraChoice:

1. Sin of the hidden trade-off – the suggestion that a product is green based on an unreasonably narrow set of attributes without attention to other important environmental issues. Example: An electronic product that is really energy efficient, but laden with mercury.

2. Sin of no proof – a claim that cannot be substantiated by easily accessible information or third-party certification. Example: Personal care products (e.g. shampoo) that say they don’t test on animals, but offer no evidence or certification.

3. Sin of vagueness – a claim that is so poorly defined or broad that its real meaning is likely to be misunderstood by the consumer. Example: A product that claims it’s “all natural.” Arsenic, uranium, and mercury are all natural, and they’re poisonous. “All natural” is totally meaningless without further elaboration.

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A couple years back, we repositioned two local health facilities under one name. Throughout our insight investigation, one fundamental truth drove our brand development: no pain, no gain gyms don’t appeal to people any more. Nowadays, people want a workout that suits their personal needs. The result? We created Miramont Lifestyle Fitness – and just about every one of their attendance records has been shattered since we launched the new name.

Contrast that idea with this brash new approach for Denver’s Anti-Gym. Let’s just say this dude didn’t find the same research we did.

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Nintendo has taken the world of gaming consoles by storm. With a firm understanding that players want more immersive and original game play, not merely flashy graphics, Nintendo introduced the Wii and targeted a much broader audience than any of its competitors. The result… demand that until recently has required waiting in line for hours each week for the mere chance of putting your hands on your very own Wii. And even more impressive, Wii sales have overtaken the Microsoft Xbox 360, which has been on the market for almost a year longer.

Further proof of the Wii’s popularity rests in a new social phenomenon — the Wii party. The online party planner Evite has capitalized on the trend with special Wii invitations, menus, and even decorating tips. So now it’s cool to get together with friends and play video games. And all this success surrounds one simple, yet crucial, concept… something we call insight.

Trendwatching.com has started an insightful snapshot look into big demographic trends (baby boomers, women, the gay community, etc.) As we research our campaigns and brand identities, it’s always important to be reaching the intended audience in innovative ways. Take women for example…

“Women. The Mega Niche. The under-served market of all markets. And so on. Just consider the fact that women, who comprise just over 50% of the U.S. population, make over 80% of the consumer purchasing decisions (and in case you’re wondering, consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of U.S. GNP). Consulting firm A.T. Kearney estimates that women determine 80 percent of consumption, purchase 60 percent of all cars and own 40 percent of all stocks.”

A study cited in the Science journal found that women and men talk about the same amount – roughly 16,000 words per day (women came in at 16,215 while men were recorded at 15,669.) Researchers tapped 396 American and Mexican college students and calculated the findings over a period of 2 to 10 days in 1998, 2001, 2003, and 2004. According to the researchers, no one had ever systematically recorded the total daily output, in natural conversations, of a sizable number of people. It seems they wanted to squash the stereotype that women are more talkative than men. But did this study hit all of the appropriate demographics? Is it a true sampling of men and women in our society today?

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Most people with any journalistic bent at all have heard of the 5Ws (who, what, when, where, why… and the first cousin, how). Generally, news stories answer these questions at a minimum and build out from there — all well and good in a reactive, “just the facts, ma’am” sort of way.

In the marketing world, one of these things isn’t like the others. One question goes right to the heart of the matter and demands results in a way the others can only dream of doing. Consider for a moment the staggering potential of “why?”

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