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Monday, February 16, 2009
Free Marketing Video | NEW!! FEATURED VIDEO
"FREE" — No Longer a Sales Gimmick
Consumers who were once suspicious of "free" offers not only embrace them in the online
world, they've come to expect them. Wired's Chris Anderson explains how the game of marketing has
changed in this exclusive interview from Pop!Tech 2008, presented by OPEN Forum. CLICK TO VIEW |
Trend Blog ReturnsAfter several months of inactivity, the TrendBlog will be returning with
content that is important to your business during these tough economic times. I will again be scouring the internet for information
relevant to today's advertising and marketing challenges. I will compile the weeks best stories and post them on a weekly
basis.
Thanks for your continued interest!-JR
Ad, media work force lost 18,700 jobs in DecemberThe number of U.S. ad and media
industry jobs in December 2008 decreased by 18,700 to 1.59 million, based on an analysis by Advertising Age's DataCenter
of U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics. The only segment to post job growth in December was Internet-media companies and Web-search
portals, which added 800 jobs to reach 82,200. The ad and media industry work force as of December 2008 had been downsized
by 3.9% since the previous December. Economic slump opens door for new adsAds for distilled spirits are appearing on prime-time TV with increasing frequency, while billboards for strip clubs
and radio ads promoting extramarital affairs are part of the local media landscape. The reason, experts say, is the economic
downturn, which is forcing media outlets to look for new revenue sources.
Walmart ups media spend during downturn
 Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is winning business
from competitors during the economic downturn, and a recent ramp up in ad spending may be partly responsible. According to
TNS, the discount retailer added $300 million -- an estimated 55% -- to its measured media spend last year (versus the year-earlier
period), at a time when its rivals were paring back marketing.
Bailed-out companies under special pressure to show marketing ROI?
Now that they answer to the
general public, banks and financial service companies receiving monies from the Troubled Asset Relief Program are under more
pressure than normal to demonstrate ROI for ad and marketing expenditures, this article says.
TV stations hit by economic woes, new media options
In the halcyon days of TV broadcasting,
it may have seemed that local stations had a license to print money, with profit margins topping 50% in the 1960s and 1970s,
according to this article. While marketers spent about $20 billion on local broadcast TV ads in 2008, that number could drop
significantly this year. Local TV stations are responding by cutting staff, original and syndicated programming. One network,
CBS, has even openly mulled the possibility of taking some shows straight to cable, to obviate the revenue split with local
stations.
Online ads get social
Increasingly, online ads are
looking to engage consumers with many of the same techniques that have attracted such a wide audience to social networks.
Sun could power next-gen digital billboards
A new type of digital sign
fueled by solar power and using light-reflecting digital ink is being tested by Lamar Advertising in Pensacola, Fla. The billboard,
which in April will be shifted to New York for further testing, resembles a paper sign and allows for more creative flexibility
than typical digital billboards, according to this article.
12:17 pm cst
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