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2010 AdAge Marketer of the Year’s Key Success Factors (Ford)

by Faraz Khan on October 18, 2010 in Advertising, News with No comments

Today Advertising Age named Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) the 2010 Marketer of the Year. Citing its drive towards profitability in one of the worst economic crisis in current history, Ford certainly deserves the trophy.

Below are the highlights of Ford’s success:

$4.7 billion profit first two quarters 2010
17% U.S. Auto & Light-Truck Market Share 2010 YTD
U.S. yearly sales ↑ 17% through August (doubling industry-wide gain of 8.4%)
55% more likely to buy Ford due to refusal of TARP funds (Rasmussen Reports survey)

The appointment of the company’s first global leader of marketing, sales & service, Jim Farley, is certainly one reason for the company’s turnaround. Additional factors include:

One Ford – internal & external focus on a single brand
Marketing focused on the product – not Henry Ford
An internal bottom-up creativity culture shift
Merging the Advertising & PR departments
The Train Model – tapping the best agency talent inside/outside WPP

It seems betting the company on the refusal of TARP funds in 2008 paid off for the auto giant with a once in a lifetime PR boost and an environment poised for a major cultural & marketing shift.

You can read more about the 2010 Marketer of the Year on AdAge.com.

Source: Advertising Age, 2010

Gulf Coast Turns to OOH to Raise Awareness, Lure Tourists

by admin on July 28, 2010 in Billboards, Digital signage, Events, News, Out-of-home advertising with No comments

From sad shrimp to tequila trains, people and companies all around the Gulf Coast seem to have jumped on the OOH media train to improve the situation left in the wake of the BP oil spill.

Adams Outdoor

From the beginning, the issue has been one of raising awareness, change, and funds to help local residents. To do this, Adams Outdoor Advertising used the power of OOH media to bring the situation into daily conversations. Using their own billboards, they posted creative showing a sad face with eyes made of shrimp and a mouth made of an oily brushstroke. Not only is the ad effective in getting your attention, it also brings the realization that the spill touched everyone in the area… especially those fishermen whose livelihoods depend on ocean life.

Patron

On the other side of the spectrum, Patron Tequila took a fun approach to raising money for Gulf residents. The St. Bernard Project partnered with The Patron Spirits Company to create the “Patrón Tequila Epicurean Express,” a restored 1927 train car that toured the country, stopping for two nights in select cities. In exchange for donations, people could board the train for a cocktail party the first night, while big spenders were also invited to a gourmet dinner the second night.

Other areas of the Coast, such as the Florida Panhandle, are finding creative ways to lure tourists back to the area they claim is unaffected by the spill. And what better way to inform people that your vacation destination is as oil-free as ever than to show them? VP of marketing for the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau, for example, is using digital billboards to post images of the pristine beaches she snapped using her iPhone. The images are then displayed alongside messages like “Our Coast is Clear” and “Wish you were here.”

Drum Roll Please… Prepare Yourself for DOfind!

by Kaitlin Heimbuch on June 4, 2010 in Agencies, Alternative advertising, DOmedia, News, Out-of-home advertising, Press with No comments

The team members at DOmedia are proud to announce the arrival of DOfind, the enhanced search interface that connects agencies and advertisers with OOH media providers and properties faster and easier than ever before. The goal of DOfind is to simplify this complex and time-consuming process known as media planning.

Request your free trial »

New and enhanced search tools allow subscribers to look for alternative, traditional & digital out-of-home media properties using specific criteria such as geography (set of DMAs, nationwide, search within a proximity to a location – to name a few), product category, venue and even target audience. Looking to reach female beachgoers this summer in their 20s who make between $25,000-75,000? Just enter your search criteria and click “search.” Plus, search results filters put the user in control of finding the media products they need by allowing them to uncheck any unnecessary criteria.

Also introduced with DOfind, Product Profiles feature key information such as Network at a Glance (digital OOH properties only), planning rates, contract terms, audience demographics, impressions, coverage areas, and art/production specs. Subscribers can then dig deeper for location-specific information found in the Asset Detail Profiles. DOfind is set up to be as detailed or as vague as the agency or advertiser needs it to be, which is why we created the ability to find products based on demographic stats like age, ethnicity, gender and household income. To appear in these targeted searches, media providers need only list all of their information within their profiles. It clearly takes two to tango, doesn’t it?

We are extremely excited about the potential of this sleek, new subscription directory, as are the many agencies and advertisers who provided all the great feedback we needed to get the tool where it is today. And after all the long hours put into the development of DOfind, it’s satisfying to know others in the industry are keeping a close eye on our activities. Several highly reputed online publications including Digital Signage Today and DailyDOOH have featured articles about the announcement of DOfind.

See what all the fuss is about… request your free trial today!

Digital Out-of-Home Unites, Shows Up for Haiti Relief Effort

by admin on January 26, 2010 in Agencies, Digital signage, Events, News, Out-of-home advertising, People, Press, Technology with No comments

Since the earthquake in Haiti, DOOH has really stepped up to the plate and proved its worth the past couple weeks. In the aftermath of a tragedy felt around the world, everyone knew something needed to be done–but what? And we all wanted to help–but how? A single, unified message had to be created and made available to the masses. Quick, effective and capable of reaching millions of people worldwide.

So when Matthew Stoudt, CEO of Outcast, rang up the presidents of Zoom Media, TargetCast Networks, CBS Outernet, PumpTopTV, Premier Retail Networks, Captivate Network, AdSpace Networks and IndoorDIRECT, it wasn’t as a competitor but as a fellow industry leader trying to take action. With combined efforts and the help of the Red Cross, the group is now running “Text ‘Haiti’ to 90999″ ads across thousands of screens in malls, grocery stores, gyms, doctors’ offices and much more. By running the message across all of the biggest digital screen networks (40,000+ screens to be exact), the donation effort will reach about 100 million Americans each month.

Originally, the Ad Council worked with the Red Cross to develop a digital image to distribute across OOH screens. From there, it was picked up and distributed through OAAA. Lamar, Clear Channel, Health Media Network and Zoom Media have all picked up these ads as well. Some of the Ad Council messages include Michelle Obama or Bill Clinton and George Bush asking for donations. Some companies, such as iDklic Digital Signage and Narrowcasting in Belgium, put together their own ads and began running them across all of their networks. RAMVISION is also running a 2-week campaign for the Disaster Emergency Committee, broadcasting across their Shopping Centre Network.

Interested in joining the effort but don’t have the time or resources to put a spot together? The Preset Group has you covered. They’ve put together PSAs for use by anyone in the digital out-of-home community. For more info, click here.

Big News for Small to Mid-Size Sellers of Alternative, Traditional & Digital Out-of-Home Media!

by admin on October 22, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, DOmedia, News, Out-of-home advertising with No comments

Well the news is out… DOmedia has officially launched two new tools for media sellers of alternative, traditional & digital out-of-home media. Introducing DOinventory and DOimprove, the most recent additions to our comprehensive tool set. DOinventory helps media providers manage their available media listings, ensuring that everyone who markets, sells or schedules within their organization has up-to-date and accurate information. DOimprove is a suite of services designed to provide critical resources needed to help small and mid-size sellers compete.