Jeff Bell Blog

1. Create and sustain breakthrough value proposition 2. Exploit a high-growth market 3. Focus relentlessly on cash flow 4. Leverage big brother alliances 5. Pack you board with industry experts 6. Use blue-chip customers to gain credibility 7. Build an inside-outside leadership team

Prerequisites for Best in Class 1. Commitment to invest in marketing/advertising 2. Centralized marketing spend, with clear governance (common language) Best in Class 1. Marketing mix modeling, optimization, ad testing, and brand equity tracking 2. Integrated attigudinal and behavioral data, market mix modeling 3. Marketing ROI, marketing drives revenue

1. Don't look at a deal as either/or proposition 2. Know what you can part with -- then part with it hard 3. Figure out the other side's teimtable. Then use it 4. Show people that you understand their position 5. Stifle your emotions 6. Don't believe everything, but don't call anyone a liar 7. Devise a backup plan that you could live with

Adweek ran an article that talked about how brands are asking their consumers to create their commericals or webisode story lines. This idea has fascinated me ever since I say 'Meet the Luckys" from Mercury. We tried "Unleash Your Freak" with the Charger launch, and then http://www.wearethemudds.com/ , but I am increasingly impressed with how far and how fast this is going. When you look at http://www.jibjab.com/ or http://www.rosterteeth.com/ or www.icebox.com or http://www.mondomedia.com/ you are looking at very creative, very democratic, and generally irreverant work. But let's face it...most indie work is going to be either very sad or very sarcastic. You will find the anger and angst coming forth with either macabre tales of suicide and deperations or satires where you get to laugh as everyone one tries to "stick it to the man." I see that James Cameron is even in the game. He wants people to play multiplayer adventure games and then capture t

Here's an interesting tidbit...sign up on http://www.unwiredbuyer.com/ and you can receive a call three minutes before the end of an eBay auction. It's free! Now think of the implications of this for all commerce. When more retail services employ the market-based auction sytle of eBay and Syms Clothiers ("An educated consumer is our best customer"), then this type of notification will be common place. The connection between goods and services (favorite sports, play, movie and concert tickets) and your payment service (bank, Paypal) is key to liquidity and efficient markets. And talk about linking entertainment with reality...Mtv is showing "a day in the life of a recent college grad on their new job," and then inviting viewers to apply for positions in that field on http://www.mtvu.com/ ! What a genius idea. I have been working on branded entertainment for some time in the areas of autos and movies (google Jeff Bell Jeep Tomb Raider, or Jeff Bell Jeep Sahar

There were two recent citings which affirm the move towards consumer generated content. The first is in Adweek from March entittled, "Brands ask web users to fill in the creative blanks." It tells how Converse sneakers and Mastercard are calling for netizens to provide video and copy for their "mainstream advertising." The other is a reference in AdAge to GM's campaign to have web users create advertisements for the new Chevy Tahoe, in coordination with The Apprecentice television show. Both are examples of the move to 1) engage potential buyers of the product 2) mobilize enthusiasts 3) lower production and distribution costs for advertising and 4) improve the "hipness" factor for the brand.

The marketing competencies that Microsoft uses to drive career development and training: 1. Customer insight leadership 2. Market analysis and opportunity identification 3. Integrated marketing planning and delivery 4. Building partnerships and ecosystems 5. Building cusotmer relationships and retentions 6. Customer and revenue business leadership 7. Positioning, branding and messaging 8. Product knowledge and advocacy Wow!

The Mobile marketing Association is developing a code of conduct that stresses best consumer practices built upon the followings tenets: 1. Choice: mobile marketing is acceptable only to consumers who opt in (applicable to all interactive marketing in my opinion). 2. Control: consumers who opt in must have an easy way to opt out (I would expand this to say that we must empower consumers to create value for your brand via fun and engaging media as well). 3. Constraint: consumers should be able to set limitations on messages received (yes, we should be allowed to say what is published to us). 4. Customization: analytical segmentation tools will help advertisers optimize message volume, ROI and relevancy to the consumer (see my prior post on the congruence between Companies and Consumers). 5. Consideration: consumers must perceive value in any mobile marketing campaign (I guess this is being considerate, but I would argue that every campaign should increase consideration because it is nat

Clearly the past has been one of passivity and viewership. Today we are in a world of greater interactivity, and the future promising much greater integration of virtual and real worlds. In the internet, the recent past was about access: AOL, AT&T, @Home. This is declining. Today we live in an internet that is more about audience: Yahoo!, NBC, Lowe's. This is beginning to show signs of decline. Tomorrow will be about Engagement. Like Blogger is to gmail is to Picaso is to Instant Messanger...the point is to interconnect all aspects of life. Personalization = control. Available is the internet. Broadband is always on. Wireless is always on with you!

Clearly mass media is declining in its efficiency and effectiveness. There is fragmentation, substitution, democratization...the list goes on. I would love comments taking the other side (e.g. 30 second ads are the best way to sell products). The term that Ted McConnell at P&G uses is "narrow-casting." The question is whether television or color print or newspaper represent the best ways to do this. Ted's challenge is to figure out how to measure what you spend. Nielsen has had a massive shell game with their ratings system, and now feel the heat. Their response is to imbed a chip in all humans so they can track their media consumption! Really, it is so ridiculous to think people should have a device on their person that I am offended at the idea. Why is it absurd? Well, for one, they believe that what matters is what people are exposed to...sorry, but what matters is what people RESPOND to! The other big deal is that consumers either want to be in control or are de f